OFAC Economic Sanctions

Restrictions on trade, financial transactions, and other economic activity with targeted countries, entities, and individuals.

TL;DR

TL;DR: OFAC economic sanctions are US Treasury restrictions that block or limit economic activity with targeted parties to advance foreign policy and national security goals.

What they restrict

Economic sanctions administered by the Office of Foreign Assets Control restrict trade, financial transactions, and other economic activity with targeted countries, entities, and individuals. Programs range from comprehensive country embargoes to narrow, targeted designations of specific people and organizations. The SDN List, the Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons List, is the central roster of blocked parties. Because sanctions programs change as policy shifts, the list of targeted parties and territories is a moving target that requires continuous screening.

How they are enforced

Sanctions are enforced under strict liability: intent is not required for a violation, and civil penalties start at $356,000 per violation. The 50 Percent Rule extends blocking to any entity owned 50 percent or more by a blocked person. These mechanics mean the burden is on the paying party to screen, not on OFAC to prove knowledge or motive. Banks and payment providers have screened for years; the same duty now follows money wherever it moves, including on chain.

Economic sanctions and agent payments

AI agents increasingly move money through payment rails that do not screen. x402, AP2, ACP, and Coinbase AgentKit move funds but do not check sanctions lists. sanctionsai.dev closes that gap by screening a counterparty before an agent pays, returning ALLOW for clean parties and BLOCK for flagged ones, so an autonomous payment flow respects the same restrictions a bank would apply.