The authorities of the European Union are taking another step towards the confiscation of assets of Russian citizens included in the sanctions lists.
As part of the 7th package of sanctions, approved by the EU Council on Thursday, oligarchs close to the Kremlin, officials, security forces, as well as companies that have been subject to restrictive measures, will be obliged to independently disclose to the authorities their property in the territory of European countries. The burden of declaring assets is transferred to the persons who have been subject to sanctions, the EU Council said in a statement. This will simplify their freezing and, in addition, create a legal basis for further confiscation of property, an official in Brussels explained to Bloomberg.
The European Commission is preparing amendments to the legislation, within the framework of which the evasion of sanctions will be recognized as a criminal offense. This will make it possible to open legal proceedings, the result of which may be a decision on the confiscation of property. The undeclared assets of the sanctioned individuals can thus be seized, Bloomberg’s source explains. The decision will be made by each individual EU country on the basis of its own legislation and norms of the judicial system.
The process of confiscation is expected to start in October — by that time the EU authorities will complete the development of the relevant directive, European Commissioner for Justice Didier Reynders said on July 12.
