What is sanctions screening? A guide to your first check

What does sanctions screening check?

Sanctions screening compares the facts you know about a person or business with records on selected sanctions lists. It helps you find a possible listed party before making a business decision. A similar name is a reason to investigate, not proof that the parties are the same.

This guide follows a supplier check in SanctionsKit, from the first search to a saved result. Try it with invented details in Sandbox first. Open your workspace, choose New screening and enter the supplier's legal name and subject type. Add reliable identifiers, country and birth date where relevant. Leave unknown fields blank. A company and its sales contact are different subjects.

Choose the lists your check needs

Select your approved policy if one applies. Otherwise, choose available sources that fit the check. The coverage directory explains what each list covers. The workspace checks which sources your organization can use now. A source page describes a list; it does not itself grant access to that list.

If a required source is unavailable, resolve the gap before proceeding. Developers can use GET /api/v1/sources to read current sources under data. Send exactly one of sources or package in POST /api/v1/screenings, plus the policy reference when required. The request guide explains authentication and safe retries.

Read the result, including its limits

Choose Run screening. A completed result shows the chosen coverage, source versions and any candidates. potential_match means there is a possible identity to review. no_match means this check returned no candidate under its submitted facts, sources and matching policy. Neither result is a general approval to do business.

A failed request or unavailable source means the operation is incomplete. Keep the task pending and save its safe operation reference. The API returns such failures as errors. It does not return a successful ScreeningResult with an incomplete status. This distinction matters when an application decides what to do next.

Work through a supplier match

Suppose the fictional supplier Cedar Vale Components has a possible company match. Open its retained case in Review queue. Compare the source name and record with the supplier's verified facts. Registration numbers help only when you know they come from comparable schemes and issuers. A missing number leaves a question open.

Record a decision for every candidate, with the facts that support it and any remaining gaps. Record the business action separately. Complete outside checks and approval when required. If the first candidate is a different company but the second remains uncertain, the second still needs work.

Save the result and follow up

For an ongoing supplier, a saved Counterparties profile links later checks to the same relationship. Keep the screening ID and use evidence exports when your records process calls for an export. If repeat checks are needed, create a monitor with the right subject and sources, then confirm its first successful screening.

The synthetic demo lets you practice a candidate review. When you are ready to connect your own application, follow the API quickstart. Test a possible match and a failed request as well as a no-match, so each outcome has a clear next step.

Know which questions need other work

Use the country sanctions explorer for dated OFAC program context and the FATF country explorer for separate jurisdiction-level statements. These references do not approve a transaction or replace screening the parties involved.

A name check cannot discover all company owners, assess every restricted service or study a pattern of payments. Under OFAC's 50 Percent Rule, ownership can matter even when a company is not named on a list. That question needs its own evidence and review.

Keep identity verification, ownership, country rules and other required checks visible alongside the list result. Explain to the person using the result what was checked and what remains open. For example, 'no candidate in these sources' tells them more than an unexplained green approval flag.

Frequently asked questions