As of today, all you exporters out there following news reports of the ever-evolving U.S. sanctions program related to the situation in Ukraine need to know the following:

The Ukraine-Related Sanctions Regulations currently grant the U.S. Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control the power to single out individuals and entities with whom U.S. persons can’t do business. 

Thus, if you have either a longstanding business relationship or are looking to establish new business connections with people or companies that may have ties to Ukraine or Russia you need to use OFAC’s search tool, located here,, to make sure that your potential business partners are not listed as Specially Designated Nationals or Blocked Persons that you consequently can’t do business with.  It’s important to note that although there are roughly 60 individuals and entities listed at this particular time, the U.S. government has confirmed that it is willing to expand the scope of the sanctions program in response to any future actions taken by Russia to destabilize Ukraine.  This means the list could change daily, so check early and check often. 

Beyond this check, it is also important to note that both the Commerce Department’s Bureau of Industry and Security and the State Departments Directorate of Defense Controls have begun to deny pending license applications for exports or re-exports to Russia or Crimea.  But if your export does not need a license from either State or Commerce, and your business partner is not on the Specially Designated Nationals or Blocked Persons List, you can still go forward with the transaction.

Again, keep in mind that these sanctions can change at any time in response to changing circumstances in Ukraine, so these considerations reflect the state of the sanctions regime on June 2, 2014 and may change.