Venezuela

Purpose of the Sanctions Regime

This sanctions regime is aimed at encouraging the government of Venezuela to:

• respect democratic principles
• comply with international human rights laws
• respect human rights.

Overview of current sanctions measures

Current financial sanction measures implemented by Jersey relating to Venezuela, include:

• Asset freezes and restrictions on making funds and economic resources available to and for the benefit of designated persons
• Travel restrictions
• Prohibitions against the export, supply and delivery, making available of, and transfer of restricted goods and technology (including military goods and technology)
• Prohibitions against providing technical assistance, financial services and funds, and brokering services relating to restricted goods and restricted technology
• A prohibition against providing interception and monitoring services
• Prohibitions against providing military-related services.

Latest news

2 August 2022

The Current List of designated persons has been updated. All current sanctions designations effective in Jersey are available in other formats on the UK Sanctions List.

8 June 2022

The Sanctions and Asset-Freezing (Amendment No. 2) (Jersey) Law 2022 comes into force today. Further information can be found on the Jersey Gazette.

17 February 2022

The Sanctions and Asset-Freezing (Implementation of External Sanctions)(Jersey) Order 2021 links to the Venezuela (Sanctions)(EU Exit) Regulations 2019. Amendments have been made to three designations that are still subject to an asset freeze. Further information can be found here.

4 February 2022

The Sanctions and Asset-Freezing (Implementation of External Sanctions)(Jersey) Order 2021 links to the Venezuela (Sanctions)(EU Exit) Regulations 2019. Amendments have been made to one designation. Further information can be found here.

*All published Latest News notices relating to financial sanctions, including those extending beyond the last 30 days, may be obtained from the Jersey Gazette

Jersey regime

The Sanctions and Asset-Freezing (Implementation of External Sanctions) (Jersey) Order 2021 (the Jersey Order) implements the Venezuela (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (the UK Regulations).

Article 3 of the Jersey Order imposes the asset-freeze provisions in Part 3 of the Sanctions and Asset-Freezing (Jersey) Law 2019 (the SAFL) on any person listed by or under the UK Regulations. The Part 3 provisions also include, but are not limited to, Articles 15-17 of the SAFL on exceptions, licences, and circumventing prohibitions etc.

Offences

The offences for this regime are set out in Parts 3 (Asset-freezes) and 6 (Information) of the SAFL and in Articles 4 to 6 of the Jersey Order.

Reporting obligations

Reporting obligations are set out at Article 32 of the SAFL and apply to all regimes in force. These obligations include requirements for a relevant financial institution to inform the Minister if:

• it holds an account of a person, has entered into dealings or an agreement with a person or has been approached by or on behalf of a person, and
• it knows, or has reasonable cause to suspect, that the person:
  • is a designated person, or;
  • has committed an offence, and
• the information or other matter on which the knowledge or reasonable cause for suspicion is based came to it in the course of carrying on its business.

Licences and exceptions

Asset-freeze prohibitions: The provisions on exceptions and licences for asset-freezes are set out in Part 3 of the SAFL. A licence may only be granted by the Minister if there is scope in the relevant UK regulations for an equivalent licence to be granted by the UK Treasury. Exceptions to an asset-freeze that are set out in UK sanctions regulations do not apply in Jersey; however, they may be considered as a basis for an asset-freeze licence application.

Non asset-freeze prohibitions: The provisions on exceptions and licences are set out in Part 3 of the SAFL. A licence may only be granted by the Minister if there is scope in the relevant UK regulations for an equivalent licence to be granted by the UK Treasury. Exceptions to a non asset-freeze prohibition that are set out in UK sanctions regulations apply in Jersey.

UK General Licences do not apply to Jersey persons or institutions operating in Jersey; however, they may be considered as the basis for a licence application.

NB: This regime also allows for the designation of persons for immigration/travel restrictions, which would be enforced under Jersey’s immigration legislation.

Legal acts

Jersey

• Sanctions and Asset-Freezing (Jersey) Law 2019
• Sanctions and Asset-Freezing (Implementation of External Sanctions) (Jersey) Order 2021

United Kingdom

• The Venezuela (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019
• The Sanctions (EU Exit) (Miscellaneous Amendments) (No. 2) Regulations 2020
• The Sanctions (EU Exit) (Miscellaneous Amendments) (No. 4) Regulations 2020

Further information

Useful information is provided on gov.uk regarding Financial sanctions, Venezuela