Recovery of sanctioned assets into the state’s revenue: international experience and practice of the European court of human rights

It is indicated that the Law of Ukraine “On Amendments to Certain Legislative Acts of Ukraine on Increasing the Efficiency of Sanctions Related to the Assets of Certain Individuals” introduced a new type of sanctions – the seizure of assets to the state. The nature of such sanctions is extrajudicial and judicial in nature in terms of restrictions on rights. In this regard, it is relevant to study international experience and case law of the European Court of Human Rights on the seizure of sanctioned assets to the state. EU sanctions may also aim to limit the ability of a target to engage in adverse behaviour by imposing costs or obstacles on the target, or by economically weakening it. How sanctions are applied and enforced depends on the nature of the particular sanction and the legal framework of the individual state seeking to impose it. The fact that assets of a government, individual or organisation are subject to a sanctions regime does not in itself mean that the assets are linked to or derive from crime. Instead, it only means that the author of the sanctions regime has deemed it necessary to include these assets in the sanctions regime on the basis that their restriction may contribute to the overall objective of the regime. However, it is important to note that sanctions imposed by some states may be applied across geographical boundaries to individuals and entities that do not necessarily have close links to the sanctioning jurisdictions. In the European Union, the day-to-day administration and enforcement of EU sanctions is carried out by designated authorities in each member state. The sanctioning authority often has broad enforcement powers that allow it to identify assets subject to sanctions regimes. Most legal jurisdictions guarantee certain rights related to the ownership and use of property. It is important to distinguish between assets that are subject to financial sanctions and assets that are ‘instrumentalities’ or ‘proceeds’ of criminal activity. Other countries will include provisions in their sanctions legislation that allow for the confiscation of sanctioned assets in certain special circumstances. In addition, the specifications as to the type of person who may be subject to the sanctions regime are also very broad and include ‘any person’ in a foreign country.