How we comply with US sanctions
UNFCU is a not-for-profit financial cooperative established in the United States. We are therefore subject to the laws and regulations of the US. This includes economic sanctions imposed by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) of the US Department of Treasury.1
Applicable OFAC sanctions prohibit and restrict account services and transactions for members located in countries subject to US sanctions. There are also OFAC restrictions on the operation of accounts for members based on their nationality, regardless of where they are located.
The list of sanctioned countries and activities are subject to change by OFAC without notice.
Countries currently subject to comprehensive US economic sanctions include Cuba, Iran, North Korea, and Syria.
Consultants and volunteers engaged by the UN or its affiliated agencies in sanctioned countries are not eligible for UNFCU membership.
There are also some restrictions on activities of members located in Sudan and Venezuela.
In addition to some general authorizations, we apply for special authorization from OFAC to limit the restrictions on members in these countries.
These authorizations from OFAC allow us to operate accounts for:
- Actively employed UN staff stationed in Iran
- Active and retired UN staff located in Cuba, and their immediate family members
- Active and retired UN staff who are Cuban nationals located outside Cuba
- Active and retired UN staff in Syria, and immediate family members of Professional staff in Syria. This does not include family members of employees of the Syrian Permanent Mission to the UN in New York.
If you separate from active UN duty while in countries subject to US sanctions, we may restrict your accounts. In some cases, we are required to obtain OFAC's authorization to remove an account restriction. We closely monitor changes in OFAC laws and regulations to see how we can avoid service disruption for our members due to restrictions.