Time to report frozen assets, Society warns solicitors

Solicitors and law firms which hold any frozen assets should report these to HM Treasury during its review period in September and October, the Law Society of Scotland warns today.

Any individuals, organisations and businesses holding such assets need to report these to HM Treasury’s Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation (OFSI) by Friday 13 October.

To see an example of what the annual review involves, the 2017 exercise is available on gov.uk. A frozen asset reporting form is also available.

The Treasury carries out the review to help ensure it has as comprehensive a return as possible of all frozen assets and that financial sanctions remain an effective foreign policy and national security tool. Solicitors are required to comply with financial sanctions in place in the UK and to report frozen assets and other relevant information to OFSI.

More information on financial sanctions can be found in OFSI’s guide to financial sanctions.