Legal provisions of COM(2011)196 - Restrictive measures directed against certain persons, entities and bodies in view of the situation in Iran

Please note

This page contains a limited version of this dossier in the EU Monitor.

dossier COM(2011)196 - Restrictive measures directed against certain persons, entities and bodies in view of the situation in Iran.
document COM(2011)196 EN
date April 12, 2011


Article 1

For the purposes of this Regulation, the following definitions shall apply:

(a) ‘funds’ means financial assets and benefits of every kind, including but not limited to:

(i) cash, cheques, claims on money, drafts, money orders and other payment instruments;
(e) ‘territory of the Union’ means the territories of the Member States to which the Treaty is applicable, under the conditions laid down in the Treaty, including their airspace.

Article 2

1. All funds and economic resources belonging to, owned, held or controlled by the natural or legal persons, entities and bodies listed in Annex I shall be frozen.

2. No funds or economic resources shall be made available, directly or indirectly, to or for the benefit of the natural or legal persons, entities or bodies listed in Annex I.
(ii)    deposits with financial institutions or other entities, balances on accounts, debts and debt obligations;

(iii)    publicly- and privately-traded securities and debt instruments, including stocks and shares, certificates representing securities, bonds, notes, warrants, debentures and derivatives contracts;

(iv)    interest, dividends or other income on or value accruing from or generated by assets;

(v)    credit, right of set-off, guarantees, performance bonds or other financial commitments;
3. The participation, knowingly and intentionally, in activities the object or effect of which is, directly or indirectly, to circumvent the measures referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 shall be prohibited.

Article 3

1. Annex I shall consist of a list of persons who, in accordance with Article 2(1) of Decision 2011/235/CFSP, have been identified by the Council as being persons responsible for serious human rights violations in Iran, and persons, entities or bodies associated with them.

(vi) letters of credit, bills of lading, bills of sale;

2. Annex I shall include the grounds for the listing of listed persons, entities and bodies concerned.

(vii) documents evidencing an interest in funds or financial resources;

(b) ‘freezing of funds’ means preventing any move, transfer, alteration, use of, access to, or dealing with funds in any way that would result in any change in their volume,
3. Annex I shall also include, where available, information necessary to identify the natural or legal persons, entities and bodies concerned. With regard to natural persons, such information may include names including aliases, date and place of birth, nationality, passport and identity card numbers, gender, address, if known, and function or profession. With regard to legal persons, entities and bodies, such information may include names, place and date of registration, registration number and place of business.
Article 4

1. By way of derogation from Article 2, the competent authorities in the Member States, as listed in Annex II, may authorise the release of certain frozen funds or economic resources, or the making available of certain funds or economic resources, under such conditions as they deem appropriate, after having determined that the funds or economic resources are:

(a) necessary to satisfy the basic needs of persons listed in Annex I and their dependent family members, including payments for foodstuffs, rent or mortgage, medicines and medical treatment, taxes, insurance premiums, and public utility charges;
(d) recognising the lien or judgment is not contrary to public policy in the Member State concerned.

2. The Member State concerned shall inform the other Member States and the Commission of any authorisation granted under paragraph 1.

Article 6

1. Article 2(2) shall not apply to the addition to frozen accounts of:

(a) interest or other earnings on those accounts; or
(b) intended exclusively for the payment of reasonable professional fees and the reimbursement of incurred expenses associated with the provision of legal services;(b) payments due under contracts, agreements or obligations that were concluded or arose before the date on which the natural or legal person, entity or body referred to in Article 2 has been listed in Annex I,
(c) intended exclusively for the payment of fees or service charges for routine holding or maintenance of frozen funds or economic resources; or

(d) necessary for extraordinary expenses, provided that the Member State concerned has notified all other Member States and the Commission of the grounds on which it considers that a specific authorisation should be granted, at least 2 weeks prior to the authorisation.

2. The Member State concerned shall inform the other Member States and the Commission of any authorisation granted under paragraph 1.

Article 5

1. By way of derogation from Article 2, the competent authorities in the Member States, as listed in Annex II, may authorise the release of certain frozen funds or economic resources, provided that the following conditions are met: provided that any such interest, other earnings and payments are also frozen in accordance with Article 2(1).
2. Article 2(2) shall not prevent financial or credit institutions in the Union from crediting frozen accounts where they receive funds transferred to the account of a listed natural or legal person, entity or body, provided that any additions to such accounts will also be frozen. The financial or credit institution shall inform the relevant competent authority about any such transaction without delay.

Article 7

By way of derogation from Article 2, and provided that a payment by a person, entity or body listed in Annex I is due under a contract or agreement that was concluded by, or an obligation that arose for the person, entity or body concerned, before the date on which that person, entity or body had been designated, the competent authorities of the Member States, as indicated on the websites listed in Annex II, may authorise, under such conditions as they deem appropriate, the release of certain frozen funds or economic resources, if the following conditions are met:

(a) the funds or economic resources in question are the subject of a judicial, administrative or arbitral lien established prior to the date on which the person, entity or body referred to in Article 2 was listed in Annex I, or of a judicial, administrative or arbitral judgment rendered prior to that date;


(a) the competent authority concerned has determined that:


(b) the funds or economic resources in question will be used exclusively to satisfy claims secured by such a lien or recognised as valid in such a judgment, within the limits set by applicable laws and regulations governing the rights of persons having such claims;


(i) the funds or economic resources will be used for a payment by a person, entity or body listed in Annex I; and


(ii) the payment is not in breach of Article 2(2); and

(c) the lien or judgment is not for the benefit of a person, entity or body listed in Annex I; and(b) the Member State concerned has, at least 2 weeks prior to granting the authorisation, notified the other Member States and the Commission of that determination and its intention to grant an authorisation.
Article 8

1. The freezing of funds and economic resources or the refusal to make funds or economic resources available, carried out in good faith on the basis that such action is in accordance with this Regulation, shall not give rise to liability of any kind on the part of the natural or legal person or entity or body implementing it, or its directors or employees, unless it is proved that the funds and economic resources were frozen or withheld as a result of negligence.

2. The prohibition set out in Article 2(2) shall not give rise to any liability of any kind on the part of the natural and legal persons, entities and bodies who made funds or economic resources available if they did not know, and had no reasonable cause to suspect, that their actions would infringe the prohibition in question.

Article 9

1. Without prejudice to the applicable rules concerning reporting, confidentiality and professional secrecy, natural and legal persons, entities and bodies shall:
2. The Council shall communicate its decision, including the grounds for the listing, to the natural or legal person, entity or body, either directly, if the address is known, or through the publication of a notice, providing such person, entity or body with an opportunity to present observations.

3. Where observations are submitted, or where substantial new evidence is presented, the Council shall review its decision and shall inform the person, entity or body accordingly.

4. The list in Annex I shall be reviewed at regular intervals and at least every 12 months.

Article 13

1. Member States shall lay down the rules on penalties applicable to infringements of the provisions of this Regulation and shall take all measures necessary to ensure that they are implemented. The penalties provided for shall be effective, proportionate and dissuasive.
(a) supply immediately any information which would facilitate compliance with this Regulation, such as accounts and amounts frozen in accordance with Article 2, to the competent authority in the Member State where they are resident or located, as indicated on the websites listed in Annex II, and shall transmit such information, either directly or through the Member States, to the Commission; and2. Member States shall notify the Commission of those rules without delay after the entry into force of this Regulation and shall notify it of any subsequent amendment to them.

Article 14

Where there is, in this Regulation, a requirement to notify, inform or otherwise communicate with the Commission, the address and other contact details to be used for such communication shall be those indicated in Annex II.
(b) cooperate with that competent authority in any verification of that information.

2. Any information provided or received in accordance with this Article shall be used only for the purposes for which it was provided or received.
Article 15

This Regulation shall apply: (a) within the territory of the Union, including its airspace;
Article 10

Member States and the Commission shall immediately inform each other of measures taken under this Regulation and shall supply each other with any other relevant information at their disposal in connection with this Regulation, in particular information in respect of violations, enforcement problems and judgments handed down by national courts.

Article 11

The Commission shall be empowered to amend Annex II on the basis of information supplied by Member States.

Article 12

1. Where the Council decides to subject a natural or legal person, entity or body to the measures referred to in Article 2(1), it shall amend Annex I accordingly.
(b) on board any aircraft or any vessel under the jurisdiction of a Member State;

(c) to any person inside or outside the territory of the Union who is a national of a Member State;

(d) to any legal person, entity or body which is incorporated or constituted under the law of a Member State;

(e) to any legal person, entity or body in respect of any business done in whole or in part within the Union.

Article 16

This Regulation shall enter into force on the day of its publication in the Official Journal of the European Union.

This Regulation shall be binding in its entirety and directly applicable in all Member States.