US policy on self-reporting of sanctions violations
US Justice Department’s National Security Division provides further policy incentive to self-report sanctions violations
Pursuant to the “Export control and sanctions enforcement policy for business organizations” (the “Policy”) published by the US Justice Department’s national security division on December 13, 2019, companies that voluntarily self-disclose sanctions and export control violations can benefit from a presumption of a non-prosecution agreement and further incentives.
The revised Policy is similar in structure to the recently revised FCPA Corporate Enforcement Policy.
The Policy is aimed to bolster self-reporting by companies. Under the Policy, prosecutors will now offer a presumption of a non-prosecution agreement as well as no fine to companies that fully self-disclose apparent violations directly. In order to be eligible for such benefits, no other aggravating factors must exist, such as the actions having been taken under the instruction of senior management or repeated violations of the applicable laws (However, even in cases where aggravating circumstances exist, companies may still be able to obtain a discount on the fine of up to 50% to the maximum fine, provided all other requirements of the Policy are met). In order to benefit from the revised Policy, companies must remediate and fully cooperate with the authorities. Furthermore, companies are still expected to pay disgorgement, forfeiture and restitution resulting from any discovered misconduct.
With the revised Policy, the US Justice Department’s national security division continues to encourage self-reporting by companies and – similar to the FCPA Corporate Enforcement Policy – companies must ensure that they get the self-reporting right in order to maximize on the benefits.
The revised Policy can be accessed here.