What are the OFAC sanctions programs?

OFAC runs 30-plus sanctions programs targeting countries, terrorism, narcotics, cyber, human rights, and non-proliferation.

TL;DR

TL;DR: OFAC administers dozens of sanctions programs, each with its own legal authority and scope, but they all feed the same SDN list that screening tools check.

Country programs

OFAC sanctions programs fall into two broad groups. Country programs target specific governments and regimes, restricting trade and financial transactions with jurisdictions under sanction. Thematic programs target conduct, including terrorism, narcotics trafficking, cyber activity, human rights abuses, and the proliferation of weapons.

Thematic programs and authority

Each program has its own legal authority, typically an executive order or a statute, and its own scope. What they share is the SDN list. The Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons list aggregates individuals and entities across all programs into one list of 19,218 names that screening tools read.

One list to check

For a payment product this is the practical simplification. You do not need to reason about which program a counterparty falls under; you check the SDN list. A screening API returns ALLOW or BLOCK in under 100 ms and also covers the 947 OFAC-listed crypto wallets and the 50 Percent Rule, so the full program landscape reduces to one call.

How programs update

Programs are not static. OFAC adds and removes designations as events change, which is why the SDN list syncs hourly in a live API. Relying on a downloaded copy of the list, however recent, invites the exact gap an enforcement action exploits. Fresh data is part of the control, not a nice-to-have.