The Sanctions (Humanitarian Exception) (Amendment) Regulations 2023

EXPLANATORY NOTE

(This note is not part of the Regulations)

The Sanctions (Humanitarian Exception) (Amendment) Regulations 2023 (“the Regulations”) are made under the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018 (c. 13) (“the Sanctions Act”).

The Regulations amend a number of sanctions regulations which have been made under section 1 of the Sanctions Act, namely:

• the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (S.I. 2019/411);

• the Democratic Republic of the Congo (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (S.I. 2019/433);

• the South Sudan (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (S.I. 2019/438);

• the Iran (Sanctions) (Nuclear) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (S.I. 2019/461);

• the ISIL (Da’esh) and Al-Qaida (United Nations Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (S.I. 2019/466);

• the Central African Republic (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/616);

• the Lebanon (Sanctions) (Assassination of Rafiq Hariri and others) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/617);

• the Somalia (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/642);

• the Mali (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/705);

• the Iraq (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/707);

• the Sudan (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/753);

• the Yemen (Sanctions) (EU Exit) (No. 2) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/1278);

• the Libya (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 (S.I. 2020/1665); and

• the Haiti (Sanctions) Regulations 2022 (S.I. 2022/1281).

In implementation of the humanitarian exception established for UN sanctions regimes by United Nations Security Council Resolution 2664 (2022) adopted by the Security Council on 9th December 2002, the Regulations insert a humanitarian exception to the provisions implementing the asset-freeze in the listed sanctions regulations (and in the case of the Somalia (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2020 and Haiti (Sanctions) Regulations 2022, replace the existing humanitarian exception). The exception provides that the prohibitions implementing the asset-freeze in the sanctions regimes mentioned above shall not apply in relation to activities carried out by a number of actors including the United Nations, its specialised agencies, or by international and non-governmental organisations supporting UN humanitarian work which are necessary to ensure the timely delivery of humanitarian assistance or to support other activities that support basic human needs

A full impact assessment has not been produced for this instrument as no, or no significant, impact on the private, voluntary or public sector is foreseen. An impact assessment was, however, produced for the Sanctions Act and can be found at:

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/653271/Sanctions_and_Anti-Money_Laundering_Bill_Impact_Assessment_18102017.pdf.