OFAC Issues General Licenses, Guidance for Humanitarian Aid to Afghanistan
The Office of Foreign Assets Control issued two general licenses aimed at allowing humanitarian assistance and aid to more easily flow to Afghanistan amid the Taliban takeover of the country’s government. The agency, which also published new guidance for using the licenses, said Sept. 24 it’s “committed to ensuring that U.S. sanctions do not limit the ability” of the Afghan people to receive aid from the U.S. government and the international community.
The new licenses and guidance were announced after former government officials and aid groups called for more action by OFAC to provide sanctions safe harbor for banks and humanitarian organizations operating in the region (see 2109020064). Some officials expressed skepticism that guidance and general licenses would be enough to convince banks to process transactions involving Afghanistan, but they said it would be a start.
General License No. 14 authorizes certain humanitarian-related transactions by the U.S. government, the United Nations, nongovernmental organizations and others with the Taliban or the Haqqani Network if they are “ordinarily incident and necessary to the provision of humanitarian assistance” to Afghanistan. General License No. 15 authorizes certain transactions with both groups related to exports or reexports of agricultural commodities, medicine, medical devices, replacement parts and components for medical devices. The license also authorizes exports and reexports related to software updates for medical devices to Afghanistan, or to “persons in third countries purchasing specifically for resale to Afghanistan.” The license also includes definitions for “agricultural commodities, medicine, and medical devices.”
OFAC outlined the definition for “humanitarian assistance” in newly issued FAQ 929 and encouraged aid groups and banks to reach out to OFAC with questions about processing related transactions. In FAQs 928 and 930, OFAC stressed that its sanctions against the Taliban “do not prohibit U.S. persons from exporting or reexporting goods or services to Afghanistan” as long as those exports don’t involve sanctioned people or entities. The agency also said General License No. 14 doesn't authorize “any debit to a blocked account on the books of a U.S. financial institution” or any financial transfers to the Taliban or Haqqani Network “other than for the purpose of effecting the payment of taxes, fees, or import duties, or the purchase or receipt of permits, licenses, or public utility services.”
Non-U.S. people and foreign banks don’t risk U.S. sanctions exposure if they conduct transactions that would normally be authorized by general licenses No. 14 and 15, OFAC said in FAQ 931. OFAC specifically added that foreign banks won’t face “exposure to correspondent and payable-through account sanctions” if the transaction would normally be authorized by the general licenses.
The agency said it may issue specific licenses for certain transactions that would normally be blocked “provided those transactions are in the foreign policy interests of the United States,” according to FAQ 930. It will consider those license requests on a case-by-case basis and will prioritize those related to humanitarian aid. “Treasury will continue to work with financial institutions, international organizations, and the nongovernmental organization community to ease the flow of critical resources, like agricultural goods, medicine, and other essential supplies, to people in need, while upholding and enforcing our sanctions against the Taliban,” OFAC Director Andrea Gacki said.