New Directive On Sanctions Offences To Harmonise Penalties For Violating EU Sanctions

In April, the European Parliament and Council adopted a Directive on sanctions violations. The Directive aims to harmonise the definitions of criminal offences and penalties related to violating EU sanctions. The purpose is to ensure that violating sanctions is a punishable offence in all Member States and that the penal provisions are at least equivalent to the minimum level set for them.

The European Commission has noted significant variation between Member States in how they define what constitutes a violation of sanctions and what the penalties are for these violations. According to the Commission, these offences are not investigated and prosecuted with sufficient efficiency. The goal of the Directive is to ensure that all Member States can speak as one in matters related to sanctions, which became particularly topical after Russia launched its military attack on Ukraine.