The Republic of Belarus (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019
| Jurisdiction | UK Non-devolved |
| Citation | SI 2019/600 |
2019 No. 600
Exiting The European Union
Sanctions
The Republic of Belarus (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019
Made 18th March 2019
Laid before Parliament 20th March 2019
Coming into force in accordance with regulation 1(2)
The Secretary of State1, in exercise of the powers conferred by sections 1(1)(c) and (3)(b), 3(1)(a), (b)(ii), (d)(i) and (ii), 4, 5, 9(2)(a), 10(2)(a) and (c), (3) and (4), 11(2) to (9), 15(2)(a) and (b), (3), (4)(b), (5) and (6), 16, 17(2) to (9), 19, 20, 21(1), 54(1) and (2)(a), 56 and 62(4) to (6) of, and paragraphs 2(b), 4(b) and (c), 5(a)(ii) and (b), 6(a)(ii) and (b), 11(a)(ii), 13(b), (h), (k), (l), (m) and (n), 14(a), (f) and (k), 17(a), 19(a), 20 to 23 and 27 of Schedule 1 to, the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 20182, and having decided, upon consideration of the matters set out in section 2(2) and 56(1) of that Act, that it is appropriate to do so, makes the following Regulations:
PART 1
General
Citation and commencement
1.—(1) These Regulations may be cited as the Republic of Belarus (Sanctions) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019.
(2) These Regulations come into force in accordance with regulations made under section 56 of the Act.
Interpretation
2. In these Regulations—
“the Act” means the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018;
“arrangement” includes any agreement, understanding, scheme, transaction or series of transactions, whether or not legally enforceable (but see paragraph 12 of Schedule 1 for the meaning of that term in that Schedule);
“Belarus” means the Republic of Belarus;
“CEMA” means the Customs and Excise Management Act 19793;
“the Commissioners” means the Commissioners for Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs;
“conduct” includes acts and omissions;
“document” includes information recorded in any form and, in relation to information recorded otherwise than in legible form, references to its production include producing a copy of the information in legible form;
“the Dual-Use Regulation” means Council Regulation (EC) No 428/2009of 5 May 2009 setting up a Community regime for the control of exports, transfer, brokering and transit of dual-use items;
“the EU Belarus Regulation” means Council Regulation (EC) No 765/2006of 18 May 2006 concerning restrictive measures in respect of Belarus4, as it has effect in EU law;
“the Government of Belarus” includes its public bodies, corporations or agencies, or any person acting on its behalf or at its direction;
“serious human rights violation or abuse” means a serious violation or abuse of any of the human rights specified in regulation 4;
“trade licence” means a licence under regulation 33;
“Treasury licence” means a licence under regulation 32(1);
“United Kingdom person” has the same meaning as in section 21 of the Act.
Application of prohibitions and requirements outside the United Kingdom
3.—(1) A United Kingdom person may contravene a relevant prohibition by conduct wholly or partly outside the United Kingdom.
(2) Any person may contravene a relevant prohibition by conduct in the territorial sea.
(3) In paragraphs (1) and (2) a “relevant prohibition” means any prohibition imposed—
(a)
(a) by regulation 9 (confidential information),
(b)
(b) by Part 3 (Finance),
(c)
(c) by Part 5 (Trade), or
(d)
(d) by a condition of a Treasury licence or a trade licence.
(4) A United Kingdom person may comply, or fail to comply, with a relevant requirement by conduct wholly or partly outside the United Kingdom.
(5) Any person may comply, or fail to comply, with a relevant requirement by conduct in the territorial sea.
(6) In this regulation a “relevant requirement” means any requirement imposed—
(a)
(a) by or under Part 7 (Information and records), or by reason of a request made under a power conferred by that Part, or
(b)
(b) by a condition of a Treasury licence or a trade licence.
(7) Nothing in this regulation is to be taken to prevent a relevant prohibition or a relevant requirement from applying to conduct (by any person) in the United Kingdom.
Purposes
4. The purposes of the regulations contained in this instrument that are made under section 1 of the Act are to encourage the Government of Belarus to—
(a) respect democratic principles and institutions, the separation of powers and the rule of law in Belarus,
(b) refrain from actions, policies or activities which repress civil society in Belarus,
(c) investigate properly and institute criminal proceedings against the persons responsible for the disappearances of Yury Zakharanka, Viktar Hanchar, Anatol Krasouski and Dzmitry Zavadski, and
(d) comply with international human rights law and to respect human rights, including in particular to—
(i) respect the right to life of persons in Belarus;
(ii) respect the right of persons not to be subjected to torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment in Belarus, including inhuman or degrading conditions in prisons;
(iii) afford persons in Belarus charged with criminal offences the right to a fair trial;
(iv) respect the right to liberty and security, including refraining from the arbitrary arrest and detention of persons in Belarus;
(v) afford journalists, human rights defenders and other persons in Belarus the right to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly;
(vi) secure the human rights of persons in Belarus without discrimination, including on the basis of a person’s sex, race, colour, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, association with a national minority, property, birth or other status.
PART 2
Designation of persons
Power to designate persons
5.—(1) The Secretary of State may designate persons5by name for the purposes of any of the following—
(a)
(a) regulations 11 to 15 (Finance); and
(b)
(b) regulation 17 (Immigration).
(2) The Secretary of State may designate different persons for the purposes of the provisions mentioned in each of the sub-paragraphs of paragraph (1).
Designation criteria
6.—(1) The Secretary of State may not designate a person under regulation 5 unless the Secretary of State—
(a)
(a) has reasonable grounds to suspect that that person is an involved person, and
(b)
(b) considers that the designation of that person is appropriate, having regard to—
(i) the purposes stated in regulation 4, and
(ii) the likely significant effects of the designation on that person (as they appear to the Secretary of State to be on the basis of the information that the Secretary of State has).
(2) In this regulation an “involved person” means a person who—
(a)
(a) is or has been involved in—
(i) conduct enabling or facilitating—
(aa) the disappearance of Yury Zakharanka, Viktar Hanchar, Anatol Krasouski or Dzmitry Zavadski, or
(bb) the failure to investigate properly or institute criminal proceedings against the persons responsible for those disappearances,
(ii) the commission of a serious human rights violation or abuse in Belarus,
(iii) the repression of civil society or democratic opposition in Belarus, or
(iv) other actions, policies or activities which undermine democracy or the rule of law in Belarus,
(b)
(b) is owned or controlled directly or indirectly (within the meaning of regulation 7) by a person who is or has been so involved,
(c)
(c) is acting on behalf of or at the direction of a person who is or has been so involved, or
(d)
(d) is a member of, or associated with, a person who is or has been so involved.
(3) Any reference in this regulation to being involved in an activity set out in paragraphs (2)(a)(i) to (iv) above includes being so involved in whatever way and wherever any actions constituting the involvement take place, and in particular includes—
(a)
(a) being responsible for, engaging in, providing support for, or promoting, any such activity;
(b)
(b) providing financial services, or making available funds or economic resources, that could contribute to any such activity;
(c)
(c) being involved in the supply to Belarus of restricted goods or restricted technology or of material related to such goods or technology, or in providing financial services relating to such supply;
(d)
(d) being involved in the supply to Belarus of goods or technology which could contribute to any such activity, or in providing financial services relating to such supply;
(e)
(e) being involved in assisting the contravention or circumvention of any relevant provision.
(4) In this regulation “relevant provision” means—
(a)
(a) any provision of Part 3 (Finance) or Part 5 (Trade);
(b)
(b) any provision of the law of a country other than the United Kingdom made for purposes corresponding to a purpose of any provision of Part 3 (Finance) or Part 5 (Trade).
(5) Nothing in any paragraph of sub-paragraph (2)(a) is to be taken to limit the meaning of any of the other paragraphs of that sub-paragraph.
(6) Nothing in any sub-paragraph of paragraph (3) is to be taken to limit the meaning of any of the other sub-paragraphs of that paragraph.
(7) In this regulation, “restricted goods” and “restricted technology” have the meanings given by Part 5.
Meaning of “owned or controlled directly or indirectly”
7.—(1) A person who is not an individual (“C”) is “owned or controlled directly or indirectly” by another person (“P”) if either of the following two conditions is met (or both are met).
(2) The first condition is that P—
(a)
(a) holds directly or indirectly more than 50% of the shares in C,
(b)
(b) holds directly or indirectly more than 50% of the voting rights in C, or
(c)
(c) holds the right directly or indirectly to appoint or remove a majority of the board of directors of C.
(3) Schedule 1 contains provision applying for the purpose of interpreting...
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