OFAC Publishes Updated Venezuela Sanctions General Licenses

The Office of Foreign Assets Control has published eight general licenses - 46D, 47B, 48C, 50C, 51C, 52B, 54B, and 61A - issued on Aug. 27 2026. Each supersedes a prior license (46C, 47A, 48B, 50B, 51B, 52A, 54A, and 61) and is now part of the Venezuela Sanctions Regulations, 31 CFR part 591.

General License 46D authorizes transactions ordinarily prohibited under the VSR that involve Venezuelan-origin oil or petrochemical products, provided the transaction is conducted by an "established U.S. entity," defined as any entity organized under U.S. law on or before Jan. 29 2025. Contracts must require dispute-resolution proceedings in the United States, the United Kingdom, France, or Singapore, and monetary payments to blocked persons must be made into the Foreign Government Deposit Funds as directed by the Treasury.

License 46D does not authorize payment terms that are not commercially reasonable, any transactions involving persons in the Russian Federation, Iran, North Korea, Cuba, or entities owned or controlled by those jurisdictions, nor transactions involving entities linked to the People's Republic of China, blocked vessels, or the unblocking of property blocked under the VSR.

Persons exporting, reexporting, selling, or supplying Venezuelan-origin oil under this license must submit a detailed report to the two listed OFAC email addresses identifying parties, quantities, values, destinations, transaction dates, and any taxes or fees paid to the Government of Venezuela. Reports are due ten days after the first transaction and every 90 days thereafter while the transactions continue.

General License 47B, along with the other newly published licenses, similarly authorizes the sale of U.S.-origin diluents to Venezuela and requires dispute-resolution provisions. All eight licenses are available on OFAC's website.