From 28 January 2026, the United Kingdom will transition to a single sanctions list.
Introducing an important change for sanctions screening and ongoing compliance oversight. While the update may appear administrative, it carries clear expectations for regulated firms and is likely to be an area of supervisory focus.
What’s Changing?
At present, UK sanctions designations are reflected across two sources:
The UK Sanctions List (UKSL)
Published by the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office.
The OFSI Consolidated List of Asset Freeze Targets
Maintained by the Office of Financial Sanctions Implementation.
From 9am on 28 January 2026, this dual approach will end. In practice:
The UK Sanctions List will become the only list updated by UK authorities.
The OFSI Consolidated List will stop updating entirely.
Including its associated search tool.
This move to a single list has been confirmed by UK authorities and reinforced through communications from regulators in Jersey and Guernsey, making clear that firms in the Crown Dependencies are firmly within scope of the change.
Why It Matters
For regulated firms including trust and corporate service providers (TCSPs), corporate service providers (CSPs), law firms, financial services businesses, and other regulated entities, this is not simply a technical update.
From the effective date, firms will need to be able to evidence that their sanctions screening relies solely on the UK Sanctions List. Continuing to reference or screen against the OFSI Consolidated List after it ceases to be updated would mean relying on an outdated source, which could increase regulatory risk.
Importantly, this is a compliance expectation, not a theoretical change. Supervisors have indicated that they are likely to ask firms how they have implemented the transition, particularly in jurisdictions such as Jersey and Guernsey where UK sanctions regimes are directly relevant.
The change also reinforces a wider regulatory principle: sanctions controls must be actively maintained, rather than implemented once and left unchanged. Regulators increasingly expect firms to monitor official guidance, update systems promptly, and demonstrate ongoing oversight of third-party tools and data sources.
What Firms Should Be Doing Now
Firms reviewing their sanctions screening arrangements in 2025 should already have this change on their checklist. Practical steps include:
Confirming that sanctions screening tools and data feeds will use the UK Sanctions List as the sole UK source from 28 January 2026.
Updating policies, procedures and internal guidance to reference the UKSL as the authoritative list.
Understanding identifier changes, including the move away from the legacy OFSI Group ID in favour of the UKSL’s Unique ID for new designations.
Engaging with third-party providers to confirm readiness and avoid reliance on legacy lists after the transition date.
UK authorities have encouraged firms to make these changes well in advance to minimise disruption and avoid last-minute remediation.
Official Guidance and Regulatory Updates
Further detail is available from the following official sources:
How YOONO Fits Into the Picture
At YOONO, we see this transition as a straightforward but meaningful example of how staying ahead of regulatory change helps protect clients from unnecessary risk and demonstrates to regulators that controls are being actively maintained, rather than simply set and forgotten.
Our focus is on supporting compliance teams with person-level public-data intelligence that complements sanctions, PEP and identity screening and helps firms evidence robust, well-governed processes as expectations continue to evolve.
Final Thoughts
With the move to a single UK sanctions list now confirmed, firms have a clear timeline to review and update their screening arrangements. Addressing this early allows teams to stay aligned with regulatory expectations and avoid avoidable compliance issues further down the line.
If sanctions screening processes are already under review this year, ensuring alignment with the UK Sanctions List should be part of that work.