British Virgin Islands

National Competent Authorities

Several authorities in the BVI play roles in the implementation and enforcement of financial sanctions:

• The Governor of the BVI is responsible for the overall administration of UK and UN sanctions extended to the BVI. As the representative of the UK Government in the Territory, the Governor has the legal authority to issue or refuse licences and authorisations required under sanctions legislation, often with the consent of the UK Secretary of State.

• The Attorney General leads the Virgin Islands Sanctions Unit, which is the primary point of contact for all sanctions-related matters (since 15 November 2024). This includes receiving licence applications, processing reporting forms, and responding to sanctions enquiries.

• The Financial Services Commission (FSC) provides guidance and monitors compliance with sanctions.

• The Financial Investigation Agency (FIA) is responsible for receiving reports of suspected sanctions breaches and suspicious activities, particularly in connection with money laundering, terrorist financing, and asset freezes.

• Financial Crimes Unit (FCU) of Royal Virgin Islands Police Force is responsible for investigating sanctions violations, among other things.

Legislation

Compilation of Orders in Council

The Russia (Sanctions) (Overseas Territories) Order 2020

The Republic of Belarus (Sanctions) (Overseas Territories) (Amendment) Order 2022

Guidance

The Virgin Islands Financial Sanctions Guidelines (Revised on 31 December 2024)

Appendix III – Designation Impact Assessment

UK Sanctions in Response to Russia’s Actions in Ukraine

Compliance with Sanctions Obligations – Reminder of What Is Expected

About Sanctions

Financial Sanctions Notices

House of Commons Library – The UK’s Overseas Territories and sanctions against Russia

The FIA website

Licensing

The Governor, with the consent of the UK Secretary of State, may issue licences permitting transactions otherwise prohibited by sanctions.  For licences related to UN sanctions regimes, the Governor may also be required to notify or seek approval from the UN Security Council prior to granting a licence.

Pursuant to Statutory Instrument No. 49 of 2024, responsibility for receiving and processing licence applications has been delegated to the Virgin Islands Sanctions Unit, which operates under the supervision of the Attorney General. While the Governor retains overall legal authority and must approve the issuance of General Licences, the Virgin Islands Sanctions Unit is now the main point of contact for sanctions-related matters.

Licence applications should be submitted via email to sanctions@gov.vg and be addressed as follows:

Virgin Islands Sanctions Unit

Attorney General Chambers

TTT Building, Wickhams Cay I

Road Town, Tortola

British Virgin Islands

Application forms are available online on the  FSC’s and FIA’s websites.

Applications should provide evidence which demonstrates that the criteria of the relevant licensing ground have been met, for example: the intended purpose of the transaction; intended payment route; sender and receiver of funds; how the funds will be accounted for; and an explanation of the reasonableness of the proposed payment.

The grounds for issuing licences are in the legislation underpinning each sanctions regime.  Common grounds for issuing a licence include:

• meeting the basic needs of a designated person or dependent family member(s);

• payment of reasonable professional fees and disbursements for the provision of legal services;

• fees and service charges for routine holding or maintenance of frozen funds or economic resources;

• extraordinary expenses or situations;

• fulfilment of prior obligations under a contract or pre-existing judicial decisions that arose prior to the designation of the person/entity; and

• humanitarian assistance activity.

Under the Russia sanctions regime, the BVI has introduced two new specific licensing grounds that facilitate the divestment of Russian-linked assets under the Russia (Sanctions) (Overseas Territories) (Amendment) Order 2024:

• Relevant‑transfer licence (Regulation 9DB(1)):
  • Authorises a BVI entity to transfer funds or economic resources owned, held or controlled by the BVI entity and located in Russia, to the Government of Russia or to a designated person.
  • Enables the BVI entity to divest itself, either wholly or partly, of those funds or economic resources, despite the general asset-freezing prohibitions.

• Relevant‑acquisition licence (Regulation 9DB(3)):
  • Authorises a BVI entity to acquire from the Government of Russia or a designated person the interest in the BVI entity held by them. This is provided that
    • the sole consideration is a transfer of funds from the BVI entity to the Government of Russia or designated person, and
    • the funds are credited to a relevant institution or a non-BVI credit or financial institution in a non-BVI country which has sanctions measures in place.
  • Enables the BVI entity to repurchase or reallocate ownership previously held by sanctioned parties.

The granting of a licence will be considered on a case-by-case basis.  Licences will not be issued retrospectively.

General Licences

The Governor has issued a number of General Licences that enable the carrying out of certain activities without requiring individual authorisation for each transaction. For example, a General Licence under the BVI Russia sanctions regime allows the payment and receipt of reasonable professional legal fees in return for legal services. A list of these General Licences is on the websites of the FSC and the FIA.

When relying on the General Licence, a written report must be filed to the Virgin Islands Sanctions Unit, preferably by email to sanctions@gov.vg, using the form available on the FSC’s General Licence page.

The Virgin Islands General Licences

Statutory Instrument No 49 of 2024

The Virgin Islands Financial Sanctions Guidelines

Appendix I – Licence Application Form

Virgin Islands General Licence No.9 2025 (Payment of Reasonable Professional Legal Fees and Expenses)

Virgin Islands General Licence No. 7 2024 (Maintenance of Economic Resources)

Virgin Islands General Licence No. 1, 2023 (As Amended) (Russian Oil Price Cap)

Enforcement

The Governor has overall responsibility for enforcing SAMLA and Orders in Council, as well as ensuring compliance by relevant entities. As supervisory authorities, the FIA and the FSC are tasked with overseeing the compliance of institutions, businesses, and professions under their supervision, ensuring adherence to the Anti-Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing Code of Practice (AMLTFCOP) and other relevant legislation.

The FIA is required to monitor compliance with anti-terrorism and anti-proliferation financing regulations under the Proceeds of Criminal Conduct Act (PCCA) and the Financial Investigation Agency Act 2023. The PCCA grants the FSC and the FIA the authority to impose administrative penalties for non-compliance with the provisions of the AMLTFCOP, including breaches of targeted financial sanctions and/or failure to submit reports in the correct format.

When determining the course of action in a breach of financial sanctions, the FIA and FSC will consider the following factors:

• whether the breach was fully and promptly self-disclosed;

• the degree of cooperation within any inquiries; and

• any remedial actions taken to improve future compliance.

The decision to pursue a criminal prosecution for breaches of financial sanctions lies with the FCU within the Royal Virgin Islands Police Force and the Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions.

Reporting

All “relevant firms”, natural and legal persons, entities and bodies must inform the Governor as soon as practicable if they know or have reason to suspect a person is designated or has committed offences that do not “facilitate compliance” with the regulations under the BVI sanctions regime, as part of their financial sanctions obligations under the Orders in Council.

Reports to the Governor’s Office for sanctions breaches must be submitted on a Compliance Reporting Form. If the designated person is a customer of a relevant firm or business, the relevant firm or business shall disclose the nature and amount of any funds or economic resources it holds for the customer when it first had the knowledge or formed the suspicion.

In addition to the reporting obligations to the Governor’s Office, a relevant firm, business or reporting entity must inform the FIA of any action that it has taken regarding a suspected breach of sanctions by a designated person, or actions taken regarding a de-list person. These entities must uphold their reporting obligations and submit a Suspicious Activity / Transaction Report to the FIA if appropriate.

Separately, there are additional reporting obligations under the Russia sanctions regimes. For instance, BVI persons who are designated must report the nature and value of any funds or economic resources that they own, hold or control in any jurisdiction. In addition, firms are subject to immobilised assets reporting requirements and shall inform the BVI competent authorities if they know or has reasonable cause to suspect they hold funds for the Russian Central Bank and others relevant entities.

Compliance Reporting Form

The Virgin Islands Financial Sanctions Guidelines

New reporting requirements for Designated Persons under the Russia Regime