1271. How does the September 30, 2026 amendment to the Cuban Assets Control Regulations (CACR) affect prohibitions related to the U.S. Department of State's List of Restricted Entities and Subentities Associated with Cuba (Cuba Restricted List or CRL)?
Effective September 30, 2026, OFAC amended § 515.209 to reflect the expanded scope of activities for which the Secretary of State, as directed by the 2025 National Security Presidential Memorandum-5 (NSPM-5), may add entities or subentities to the CRL. Specifically, the Secretary of State may now add to the CRL any entities or subentities that are under the control of, or act for or on behalf of, or for the benefit of, the Cuban military, intelligence, or security services or personnel and with which direct or indirect financial transactions would disproportionately benefit such services or personnel at the expense of the Cuban people or private enterprise in Cuba.
Additionally, the prohibition at 31 CFR § 515.209 previously prohibited persons subject to U.S. jurisdiction from engaging in "direct financial transactions" with entities or subentities on the CRL. Effective September 30, 2026, OFAC amended § 515.209 to also prohibit persons subject to U.S. jurisdiction from engaging in an "indirect financial transaction" with any entity or subentity on the CRL. See the prohibition at § 515.209 and FAQ 735 for more information regarding a "direct" and "indirect" financial transaction.
Further, to guard against evasion of the prohibition on direct or indirect transactions with entities or subentities on the CRL, OFAC also amended § 515.201(c) to add a prohibition on any transaction that has the purpose or effect of evading or avoiding prohibitions on direct or indirect transactions with entities or subentities on the CRL.
To account for these changes, OFAC amended the following general licenses that previously only excluded direct financial transactions with entities or subentities on the CRL to now also exclude indirect financial transactions with such entities: §§ 515.530 (powers of attorney); 515.534 (contingent contracts); 515.545 (information/informational materials); 515.560 (travel-related transactions); 515.561 (family visits); 515.564 (professional research); 515.565 (educational activities); 515.566 (religious activities); 515.567 (public performances); 515.572 (travel services); 515.573 (physical and business presence in Cuba); 515.574 (support for the Cuban people); 515.576 (private foundations or research or educational institutes); 515.577 (publishing); 515.578 (internet based services); 515.581 (conferences in third countries); 515.584 (certain financial transactions); and 515.590 (certain grants, scholarships, and awards). For a complete description of what each general license authorizes and the restrictions that apply, see the aforementioned general licenses.
OFAC also amended 31 CFR § 515.421 to clarify that transactions ordinarily incident to licensed transactions do not include direct or indirect financial transactions with entities and subentities on the CRL if the terms of the applicable general or specific license expressly exclude such direct or indirect financial transactions.
Released on Sep 29, 2026
1) Straightforward explanation of the 9-30-26 amendments to the CACR expanding the scope of the prohibition of the prohibition at 515.209 to cover “indirect” financial transactions, whereas previously only “direct” financial transactions were covered.