By Sam Fowler-Holmes and Fiona Luong

UK companies who are trading or are considering trading with Iran may now face potential criminal penalties for breaching the EU Blocking Statute, underscoring the need to carry out due diligence in order to best manage their risk profile. This includes:

• assessing whether any authorisations are required from either the US or EU in relation to current and future business activities (e.g. by obtaining the EU Commission’s authorisation to comply with specified US extraterritorial sanctions); and

• weighing up the risks associated with breaching US extraterritorial sanctions against those of breaching the EU Blocking Statute and updating internal policies, protocols, and business plans (where appropriate).

This may cause problems for parties who will be caught between US sanctions and UK/EU requirements.