Humanitarian assistance in environments subject to EU sanctions

Guidance

Horizontal guidance on the provision of humanitarian aid in compliance with EU restrictive measures

The guidance note provides practical direction on how to comply with EU restrictive measures, addressing some of the specific issues concerning the possible interaction of sanctions with the provision of humanitarian aid.

See the guidance note on the provision of humanitarian aid

Guidance on the provision of humanitarian aid to fight to COVID-19 pandemic in environments subject to EU restrictive measures

This Guidance Note provides practical guidance on compliance with EU sanctions when providing humanitarian aid and medical assistance to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.

Guidance on the implementation of certain provisions of Myanmar/Burma Sanctions

Guidance on the implementation of Global Human Rights sanctions

EU-level contact point for humanitarian aid in environments subject to EU sanctions

The EU-level contact point for humanitarian aid in environments subject to EU sanctions is one of the tools that the Commission has deployed in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic in order to support and facilitate the activities of humanitarian operators engaged in the provision of humanitarian aid in environments subject to EU sanctions.

It is intended to assist those involved in the provision of humanitarian aid – donors, NGOs, banks and others – by providing information and preliminary guidance in relation to humanitarian derogations under EU sanctions regimes.

EU Member States are responsible for the implementation of EU sanctions, which means that it is within the remit of the competent authorities of the Member States to assess the requests and grant derogations to their humanitarian operators. To facilitate their task, the EU-level contact point assists humanitarian operators in identifying the national authority responsible for assessing their request and, when possible, provide preliminary replies to queries relating to derogation requests.

To that end, humanitarian operators are invited to ec-sanctions-humanitarian-contact-pointec [dot] europa [dot] eu (direct their queries to ec-sanctions-humanitarian-contact-point[at]ec[dot]europa[dot]eu) by indicating

• basic information describing the humanitarian activity or operation subject to the query
• the sanctioned environment or the applicable sanctions regime, which is in their view subject to their activity and/or query
• the competent authority or authorities they believe may be responsible for handling their request and the reason why they have identified that authority or authorities

For further assistance on the provision of humanitarian aid to tackle the COVID-19 pandemic in compliance with EU sanctions, please consult the guidance note on the provision of humanitarian aid to fight the COVID-19 pandemic in certain environments subject to EU restrictive measures.

For more information and guidance on how to comply with EU sanctions when providing humanitarian aid, please consult the guidance note on the provision of humanitarian aid in compliance with EU restrictive measures.

 

Other supporting tools

Factsheet on the humanitarian derogation

The Factsheet provides an overview of all the rules and procedures adopted by Member States and applied by their National Competent Authorities to grant authorisations for humanitarian derogations.

See the factsheet on the humanitarian derogation

Frequently asked questions on the humanitarian exemption in the EU Syria sanctions regime following the February 2023 earthquakes in Türkiye and Syria

Frequently asked questions on humanitarian aid concerning sanctions adopted following Russia’s military aggression against Ukraine

Risk management principles guide for sending humanitarian funds into Syria and similar high-risk jurisdictions

The non-official guide supported by the Commission offers a set of non-binding principles and practical suggestions concerning the provision of aid in Syria in compliance with EU sanctions

Frequently asked questions on EU restrictive measures in Syria