Syria Sanctions

The E.O. of June 30, 2025 removes sanctions on Syria, effective July 1, 2025, while maintaining sanctions on Bashar al-Assad and certain other destabilizing regional actors. Specifically, the E.O. revokes the following six E.O.s that form the foundation of the Syrian Sanctions Program and terminates the national emergency underlying those E.O.s, effective July 1, 2025:

• E.O. 13338 of May 11, 2004;
• E.O. 13399 of April 25, 2006;
• E.O. 13460 of February 13, 2008;
• E.O. 13572 of April 29, 2011;
• E.O. 13573 of May 18, 2011; and
• E.O. 13582 of August 17, 2011.

As a result, as of July 1, 2025, the economic sanctions administered by OFAC that constitute the Syria Sanctions Program are no longer in effect. Persons blocked solely pursuant to these above E.O.s were removed from OFAC's List of Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons (SDN List), and all property and interests in property of such persons are unblocked. OFAC will remove the Syrian Sanctions Regulations from the Code of Federal Regulations. Pending or future OFAC investigations or enforcement actions related to apparent violations of the Syrian Sanctions Regulations that occurred prior to July 1, 2025 may still be carried out.

Additionally, the E.O. of June 30, 2025 also preserves and expands OFAC's ability to target Bashar al-Assad and his associates, human rights abusers, captagon drug traffickers, and other destabilizing regional actors by further amending E.O. 13894. Concurrently with the issuance of the E.O. of June 30, 2025, OFAC designated 139 persons who were previously designated under the Syrian Sanctions Program under E.O. 13894, as further amended, or other OFAC authorities.

Yes. All Syrian financial institutions, including the Central Bank of Syria, have been removed from OFAC's List of Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons (SDN List).

Effective July 1, 2025, U.S. persons are not prohibited from providing financial services to Syria, processing payments on behalf of third country financial institutions involving Syrian financial institutions, or conducting transactions with the new Government of Syria and Syrian financial institutions, provided that none of the involved parties are on the SDN List. This includes establishing correspondent banking relationships with Syrian financial institutions. In line with the lifting of Syria sanctions, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network issued exceptive relief in late May 2025 to permit U.S. financial institutions to open and maintain correspondent accounts for the Commercial Bank of Syria. OFAC strongly encourages financial institutions to employ a risk-based sanctions compliance program and update it as appropriate in consideration of new business lines.

No. The United States no longer maintains comprehensive sanctions on Syria, effective July 1, 2025, following the issuance of the E.O. of June 30, 2025. You may send U.S.-origin food or medicine to Syria without a specific license from OFAC.

Furthermore, the Department of Commerce maintains jurisdiction over the export of most items to Syria. In the E.O. of June 30, 2025, the President waived requirements to impose certain export controls under the Syria Accountability and Lebanese Sovereignty Restoration Act of 2003 and the Chemical and Biological Weapons Control and Warfare Elimination Act of 1991. Please refer to the Department of Commerce for more specifics on export controls involving Syria.

Yes. While Syria GL 25 authorizes transactions otherwise prohibited under the Syrian Sanctions Regulations, it also authorizes transactions involving specified persons otherwise prohibited by certain other sanctions programs. To the extent necessary, persons may continue to rely on GL 25 and the related Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs).