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OFAC and Sanctions Screening

There are dire consequences for organizations that do business with bad actors.  Paying a supplier, person or party that is on the sanctions list of the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the U.S.Treasury Department could result in millions of dollars in monetary fines.

Office of Foreign Assets Control – Sanctions Programs and Information | U.S.Department of the Treasury

From drug dealers and diamond smugglers to rogue regimes and terrorist organizations, the federal government maintains lists of organizations, individuals and countries that you can’t do business with.  

What are the Penalties for Breaking OFAC Sanctions? | Dow Jones Professional

Manually checking suppliers against the OFAC Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons (SDN) list – or worse, not checking at all – leaves organizations vulnerable to big compliance issues.

How to Automate OFAC Checks

OFAC checking doesn’t have to be so risky.
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FinancialOperations Networks can help ensure that your organization doesn’t do business with entities on the OFAC SDN list of banned persons and parties in sanctioned countries.  

  • Capture supplier information via a secure online portal
  • Make it easy for suppliers to complete and sign tax forms online
  • Verify the accuracy of information provided by suppliers
  • Automatically validate suppliers against OFAC SDN and 21 other compliance lists
  • Check your existing vendor master against new additions to the OFAC SDN list
  • Quickly and securely complete vendor approval workflows online

 

SanctionsList Search Tool | U.S. Department of the Treasury
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Whether your organization is automating its supplier onboarding and registration process for the first time or make incremental improvements, deploying a self-service vendor portal with automated OFAC checking built-in can deliver big operational and reputational benefits.

The Benefits of Automated OFAC Screening

Automatically screening suppliers against sanctions lists reduces an organization’s risk exposure.

  • Streamline OFAC sanctions checks during vendor onboarding
  • Perform OFAC screening in real-time
  • Avoid fines and penalties
  • Protect your organization’s reputation
  • Improve your organization’s relationship with vendors

Organizations of all sizes and across all industries can benefit from automated OFAC SDN checks as part of their vendor onboarding.

The Best OFAC Screening Solution

Screening suppliers against OFAC SDN and other sanctions lists is a critical part of the vendor onboarding and registration process. Don’t leave your organization at risk of compliance issues. Click here to book an online demo of our automated OFAC SDN screening solution today.

Frequently asked questions

How does VendorInfo automate OFAC screening for vendors?

VendorInfo automatically validates every vendor against the OFAC Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list and hundreds of other compliance lists in real time, as the vendor submits their information through the portal, so no one has to search the lists by hand before the vendor goes through your approval workflow.

Which sanctions lists does VendorInfo check?

VendorInfo validates vendors against the OFAC SDN list and hundreds of other compliance lists. As part of its vendor verifications, it also checks UK, EU and UN sanctions lists, Russia-Ukraine sanctions, the Denied Persons List and terrorist-organization lists.

Can sanctions screening be automated in accounts payable and invoice processing?

Yes. The most effective approach screens vendors at onboarding, re-screens the existing vendor master whenever sanctions lists change, and blocks payment to any unresolved match. VendorInfo automates the first two steps, so AP does not rely on manual list lookups at payment time.

Does VendorInfo re-screen existing vendors when the SDN list changes?

Yes. VendorInfo continuously checks your existing vendor master file against new additions to the OFAC SDN list, so vendors who were clear at onboarding are flagged if they are later designated.

What happens if a vendor is a potential OFAC match?

A potential match is not a confirmed match. VendorInfo holds and escalates any potential match for human review and identifies the issues that were uncovered.

What to do if you get a hit in your OFAC check

Why do vendors need OFAC screening?

U.S. organizations are prohibited from paying anyone on the OFAC SDN list, and OFAC civil penalties apply on a strict-liability basis: a company can be fined even if it did not know the vendor was sanctioned. Screening every vendor before approval is the standard control against that risk.

OFAC checking and screening FAQs