22 Added to Belarus Sanctions List

Summary#

These are final changes to the Special Economic Measures (Belarus) Regulations that add 22 people and entities to Canada’s Belarus sanctions list. The amendments came into force on January 24, 2025 and were published in the Canada Gazette on February 12, 2025.

What it does#

• Adds 22 named entries to Schedule 1 of the Special Economic Measures (Belarus) Regulations. Those additions include:
  • 7 individual family members or close associates of people tied to human-rights abuses in Belarus.
  • 3 additional individual listings.
  • 9 companies involved in Belarus’s defence and military-industry.
  • 3 state security bodies.
• Creates a broad prohibition on dealings by anyone in Canada, or any Canadian outside Canada, with the newly listed persons and entities. That means Canadians and Canada-based businesses generally cannot:
  • handle or transfer the listed persons’ property;
  • enter into transactions with them; or
  • provide them with services or goods.
• Makes listed individuals inadmissible to Canada under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act.
• Allows listed persons to apply to the Minister of Foreign Affairs to be removed from the list (delisting is a separate process).

Who's affected#

• Canadians and people in Canada who do business with or provide services to the newly listed persons.
• Canadian banks and financial institutions, which must add the new names to sanction-screening systems and block or report prohibited transactions.
• The newly listed individuals and entities themselves — including their assets that might be in Canada or handled through Canadian institutions.
• Global Affairs Canada, which maintains and publishes the Consolidated Canadian Autonomous Sanctions List and administers related permits and inquiries.
• Enforcement agencies such as the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Canada Border Services Agency, which have powers to investigate and enforce violations.

Why it matters#

• The practical effect is an asset freeze and a ban on commercial and financial dealings with the listed people and entities. That can cut off access to Canadian money, services, and markets.
• The measures are aimed at people and organizations linked to human-rights abuses in Belarus and to Belarus’s support for Russia’s war in Ukraine. They are meant to increase pressure and signal Canada’s stance alongside international partners.
• Non-compliance can carry criminal penalties: upon summary conviction a fine up to $25,000 or imprisonment up to one year (or both), and on indictment imprisonment up to five years.
• For ordinary Canadians, the most noticeable effects will be stronger bank screening and potential restrictions on any business or travel dealings involving the newly listed names.