New financial sanctions reporting requirements

As we previously reported in our member enews on 19 December 2024, letting agents will have to comply with new financial sanctions requirements from 14 May 2025. From that date, all letting agents in the UK must submit a report to the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) (part of HM Treasury) if, in the course of their business, they become aware or have reasonable cause to suspect that a person (i) is a designated individual; or (ii) has committed a breach of financial sanctions regulations. Financial sanctions help the UK meet its foreign policy and national security aims, as well as protect the integrity of its financial system. Financial sanctions include restrictions on designated persons, such as freezing financial assets, as well as wider restrictions on investment and financial services.

The names of designated individuals who are the subject of UK sanctions can be found here. It currently includes individuals and entities associated with countries including Afghanistan, Belarus, Bosnia & Herzegovina, Central African Republic, North Korea, Congo, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Haiti, Iran, Iraq, Libya, Mali, Myanmar, Nicaragua, Russia, Somalia, Sudan, South Sudan, Syria, Venezuela, Yemen and Zimbabwe.

Full government guidance on the new duties can be found here.

SAL’s factsheet on ID checks and referencing has been updated with guidance on this new duty on page 3 of the factsheet which can be found here.

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