General licences
Following on from a review of all General Licences relating to Sanctions, the Treasury has the power to revoke, vary or suspend General Licences for financial and trade sanctions regimes under a number of Regulations.
On 25 April 2024, the Treasury revoked the following General Licences under regulations listed in Annex I of this notice:
- General Licence – Russia – IOM/2022/RUS006: Russian Banks – Subsidiaries – Payments for basic needs, routine holding, maintenance, legal fees and insolvency related
- General Licence – Russia – IOM/2022/RUS007: Regulatory authorities – Prudential Supervision or Financial Stability
- General Licence – Russia – IOM/2022/RUS021: Russian Travel
- General Licence – Russia – IOM/2022/RUS023: Continuation of Business and Basic Needs for Telecommunications Services and News Media Services
- General Licence – Russia – IOM/2022/RUS029: Crown Servants, Contractors and their family members
- General Licence – Russia – IOM/2022/RUS034: Transactions related to agricultural commodities including the provision of insurance and other services
- General Licence – Russia – IOM/2022/RUS036 – Oil Price Cap: Wind-down
- General Licence – Russia – IOM/2022/RUS038 – Oil Price Cap: Exempt Projects and Countries
- General Licence – Russia – IOM/2022/RUS039 – Oil Price Cap: Refined Oil Products Wind-down
- General Licence – Russia – IOM/2023/RUS040: Trust Services
- General Licence – Belarus – IOM/2021/BEL001: Emergency payment(s) directly or via an intermediary to Belaeronavigatsia for air traffic services
- General Licence – Belarus – IOM/2022/BEL002: Provision of navigational data to civilian aircrafts for flight safety
- General Licence – IOM/2022/SAN001: Permitted payments to UK Insurance Companies
On 25 April 2024, the Treasury made amendments to the following General Licences under regulation 64 of the Russia (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019, as they have effect in the Isle of Man by the Russia Sanctions (Application) Regulations 2020, the Treasury may also revoke, vary or suspend a licence at any time (regulation 66):
- General Licence – Russia – IOM/2022/RUS035: this licence was withdrawn and a new oil price cap general licence replaced it and has the reference IOM/2024/RUS042
- General Licence – Russia – IOM/2022/RUS037: allows Relevant Institutions to process, clear, or send payments from any Person in connection with activities which would otherwise contravene regulation 46Z9C of the Russia Regulations
The Relevant Institution must with regard to the subject transaction:
a) Be operating solely as an intermediary, and
b) Not have any direct relationship with the Person providing services relating to the maritime transportation of the Russian oil (i.e., the Person is a non-account party)
This licence was amended to update the definition of ‘Russian Oil’ and to add reporting for the use of this licence.
- General Licence – Russia – IOM/2024/RUS042 – Oil Price Cap: permits the supply or delivery by ship of Russian crude oil and oil products, as well as provision of associated services, so long as the price paid for Russian oil or oil products is at or below the price cap. This general licence sets the price at USD $60 per barrel for crude oil, USD $100 for ‘premium to crude’, and USD $45 for ‘discount to crude’
Subject to the exclusions and conditions and provided that no supply or delivery by ship of Russian oil or Relevant Services are provided to a Designated Person:
- A person may supply or deliver Russian oil by ship from a place in Russia to a third country or from one third country to another third country provided that the Unit Price of the Russian oil concerned is at or below the Price Cap
- A service provider may provide relevant services to any person provided that the unit price of the Russian oil being supplied or delivered by ship from a place in Russia to a third country or from one third country to another third country is at or below the Price Cap
- A Relevant Institution may process payments in relation to the activities authorised by paragraphs I and II
The General Licence utilises an attestation process – on a per-voyage basis – which is designed to put different levels of requirement onto different actors in the oil supply chain, depending on whether they routinely know the price paid in their ordinary course of business and how often they transact. An attestation means a document:
- Demonstrating that the Price Information of the Russian oil to be supplied or delivered, or being supplied or delivered, is or will be at or below the Price Cap
- Demonstrating that the Unit Price of the Russian oil to be supplied or delivered, or being supplied or delivered, is or will be at or below the Price Cap
- Attesting that the Unit Price of the Russian oil to be supplied or delivered, or being supplied or delivered, is or will be at or below the Price Cap
- Attesting that the Russian oil was purchased pursuant to a Licence issued under Part 4 of Schedule 5 of the Russia Regulations for example to enable anything to be done to deal with an extraordinary situation
- Which, for Tier 3A and Tier 3B Providers, contains a clause within contractual terms and conditions that the Unit Price of the Russian oil to be supplied or delivered, or being supplied or delivered, is or will be at or below the Price Cap
Tier 1 Providers (and Tier 2 Providers with access to the information) are required to record itemised ancillary costs information – on a per-voyage basis – and provide them to other Tier 1, Tier 2 and Tier 3A contractual counterparties upon request.
The General Licence takes effect from the 25 April 2024.
General
The permissions in General Licences do not authorise any act which the person carrying out the act knows, or has reasonable grounds for suspecting, will result in funds or economic resources being made available in breach of Autonomous Sanctions Regulations, save as permitted under licences granted under the Autonomous Sanctions Regulations.
Further details of the sanctions regime related to Russia may be found on the Customs and Excise pages of the Isle of Man Government website.
