The European Commission has initiated a helpdesk for EU SMEs to aid them in navigating the complex sanctions landscape. The EU Sanctions Helpdesk offers a wide range of services to assist SMEs in complying with EU sanctions globally, minimizing non-compliance risks and associated costs. The EU currently enforces over 40 global sanctions regimes.
The Helpdesk provides personalized support for SMEs conducting due diligence on sanctions, free of charge. It operates a dedicated website that includes information on sanctions, country-specific advice, events, and lessons learned.
Covering all UN and EU restrictive measures, the Helpdesk equips SMEs with necessary insights to confidently handle sanctions compliance challenges, helping avoid the loss of legitimate business due to legal uncertainties.
While larger entities may also benefit, the Helpdesks focus is on SMEs, which often have fewer compliance resources. The Helpdesk collaborates with public authorities, business support entities, financial institutions, and international compliance organizations to conduct joint outreach, awareness activities, and training.
Background
EU sanctions are vital in the EUs foreign and security policy, with over 40 regimes globally, ranging from asset freezes to comprehensive sectoral approaches. As global tensions rise, these measures expand rapidly, necessitating increased compliance efforts. The EU Sanctions Helpdesk aims to support compliance while preventing over-compliance, enhancing confidence among financial and business partners, and reducing compliance costs.
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