On 28 January 2026, the UK Government completed a major reform of its sanctions designation framework by consolidating multiple sanctions registers into a single authoritative list. This change responds to long-standing calls from industry and regulatory stakeholders for a simpler, clearer sanctions compliance regime, and marks a significant evolution in how the UK publishes and manages sanctions information.
Under the new approach, the UK Sanctions List (UKSL) published by the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) has become the only sanctions designations list for all UK sanctions regimes. Other lists, notably the OFSI Consolidated List of Asset Freeze Targets have ceased to be updated and will no longer serve as a primary source for sanctions compliance.
Background: The Old Two-List System
Historically, the UK maintained two distinct sanctions lists:
- UK Sanctions List – maintained by the FCDO, detailing all sanctioned persons, entities, and ships and the types of sanctions applied (financial, trade, immigration, transport etc.).
- Consolidated List of Asset Freeze Targets – maintained by the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) under HM Treasury, focused specifically on individuals and entities subject to UK financial sanctions.
This dual-list system often caused duplication, confusion, and compliance challenges for businesses and compliance teams who had to check both registers to determine whether an individual or entity was subject to sanctions. The move to a single list emerges directly from a cross-government review of sanctions implementation and enforcement, which concluded that consolidation would reduce duplication, simplify screening, and increase clarity for all users.
Key Changes in the 28 January 2026 Guidance
1. The UK Sanctions List Becomes the Sole Sanctions Designation Source
From 09:00 GMT on 28 January 2026, the UK Sanctions List became the only official list that details all UK sanctions designations.
As a result:
- The OFSI Consolidated List and its search tool have stopped receiving updates.
- All sanctions screening, including checks for financial, immigration, trade, transport, and other sanctions types, must now be conducted against the UK Sanctions List alone.
This unified approach ensures that the UK Sanctions List serves as the single reliable source for compliance professionals, legal teams, banks, and international partners seeking to determine sanctions status.
2. Retirement of “OFSI Group ID” and Adoption of “Unique ID”
Under the old system, entities subject to financial sanctions often carried an OFSI Group ID.
In the updated framework:
- New designations are no longer assigned an OFSI Group ID.
- All newly designated persons (DPs) will instead be identified using a ‘Unique ID’ field within the UK Sanctions List.
- Legacy cases, that is, persons designated before 28 January 2026, will retain their historic OFSI Group IDs in archived formats and for reporting contexts, but future identification will rely solely on the Unique ID structure.
This change addresses inconsistencies and simplifies data integration across sanctions screening systems and compliance platforms.
3. Expanded UK Sanctions List Formats and Static URLs
To ensure that all users can access sanctions data in the formats they require, the UK Government has expanded the available file formats for the UK Sanctions List. In addition to existing formats, ODT (Word), ODS (Excel), XML, and HTML, the UKSL now includes:
- CSV (Comma-Separated Values)
- Plain Text (.txt)
- PDF (Portable Document Format)
All these formats are published via static URLs on GOV.UK, meaning that the web addresses for each format will remain constant even as the list is updated over time. This supports automated compliance systems, API integrations, and internal compliance workflows that depend on stable data endpoints.
4. Upgraded Sanctions List Search Tool
With the transition to a single list, the UK Sanctions List search tool has been upgraded to offer:
- Fuzzy logic search to better match queries with potential sanctions targets.
- Ranked results that help users prioritize risk and relevance.
- Highlighting of matched terms within results, improving clarity.
- Improved download options for bulk data retrieval.
This modernised tool supports both one-off checks and large-scale screening needs, encouraging faster and more accurate identification of sanctioned persons and entities.
5. Continued Publication of All Types of Sanctions Notices
Prior to 2026, only financial sanctions notices appeared in the UK Sanctions List updates. With the move to a single list:
- Sanctions notices covering all types of sanctions (not just financial) will be published in connection with the relevant sanctions regimes and guidance.
- These notices are now integrated into the UKSL system and accessible alongside broader sanctions documentation.
This improves transparency and ensures regulators and businesses can trace and understand sanctions updates irrespective of the sanctions type.
Guidance for Businesses and Compliance Teams
The Government’s advice alongside this transition includes practical steps organisations should take:
- Switch to the UK Sanctions List now as the primary source of sanctions data, don’t wait until the deadline.
- Update internal systems and compliance software to reference the UKSL’s Unique ID instead of legacy Group IDs.
- Review contracts and screening clauses that may still refer to the OFSI Consolidated List, and replace these references with the UK Sanctions List where appropriate.
- Validate your screening suppliers (third-party data vendors or compliance tool providers) to ensure they are aligned with the new regime and using UKSL data.
What Remains Unchanged
Importantly, the transition to a single sanctions list does not alter:
- The underlying structure or data fields of the UK Sanctions List itself.
- The legal framework for UK sanctions designations under the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018.
- The scope of sanctions measures: financial, immigration, trade, transport and other sanctions types continue to be published, now under the consolidated list.
A More Streamlined Sanctions Framework
The consolidation of UK sanctions designations into a single list represents a major step forward in regulatory clarity, compliance efficiency, and global accessibility of sanctions data. By retiring the dual-list system and simplifying identifiers and formats, the UK Government aims to make sanctions compliance easier for domestic stakeholders, international businesses, financial institutions, and legal professionals.
From now on, the UK Sanctions List, with enhanced formats, improved search functionality, and a streamlined designation process, will serve as the definitive reference point for all sanctions screening and compliance activities related to the UK’s autonomous sanctions regime.
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