The EU Commission has launched a new one-stop-shop to provide support to European small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in navigating the complex landscape of sanctions compliance.
The EU Sanctions Helpdesk will offer a comprehensive range of services which are designed to help smaller businesses comply with EU sanctions worldwide, thereby reducing the risk of non-compliance and the associated costs.
“The EU has over 40 sanctions regimes globally to prevent conflict or respond to current or emerging crises. The growing use of sanctions can make the activities of our SMEs more complex,” said Financial Services Commissioner Maria Luís Albuquerque. Through its resources, events and, especially, its Compliance Support Service, this one-stop-shop will help SMEs understand how to comply with sanctions and assist those SMEs that find it challenging to perform due diligence independently.
The Commission’s helpdesk will provide personalised support to EU SMEs performing sanctions due diligence checks – at no cost to the companies. A dedicated website will feature sanctions-related information, country-specific guidance, events, tips, lessons learned, and more. While there are instances where larger entities can benefit from support, the Helpdesks focus ilwl be squarely on SMEs as they typically have fewer compliance resources than large companies.
All UN and EU sanctions will be covered by the Helpdesk, providing SMEs with the necessary information to manage the challenges of sanctions compliance with confidence.
