Global Magnitsky sanctions explained

Last checked: 20 October 2026 · Measures explained

Global Magnitsky sanctions are US measures against foreign persons tied to serious human rights abuse or corruption. They rest on the Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act of 23 December 2016 and Executive Order 13818 of 20 December 2017 ^1,3. The Treasury's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) blocks the property of designated persons, and the order suspends their entry into the United States ^3,4.

Statute: Global Magnitsky Human Rights Accountability Act, Public Law 114-328, enacted 23 December 2016 ¹
Executive order: Executive Order 13818, signed 20 December 2017, published at 82 FR 60839 on 26 December 2017 ³
Effective date of the order: 21 December 2017, according to OFAC ⁴
Regulations: Global Magnitsky Sanctions Regulations, 31 CFR part 583 ⁴
Other authorities listed by OFAC: IEEPA, 50 U.S.C. 1701 to 1706, and Public Law 117-110 ⁴
Sunset: The six-year sunset in the 2016 Act was repealed by Public Law 117-110 on 8 April 2022 ²

The 2016 Act

The Act was part of Public Law 114-328 of 23 December 2016 ¹. Its sanctions section now appears at 22 U.S.C. 10102 ¹. It lets the President sanction a foreign person on the basis of credible evidence ¹.

The Act first ended the authority six years after enactment. Public Law 117-110 repealed that sunset on 8 April 2022 ².

Persons responsible for extrajudicial killings, torture or other gross violations of internationally recognized human rights against people who expose illegal acts by officials or who seek to promote human rights ¹.
Persons who act as agents of, or on behalf of, a person in that category ¹.
Government officials, or their senior associates, responsible for or complicit in acts of significant corruption, such as bribery or the transfer of corruption proceeds abroad ¹.
Persons who materially assist, sponsor or provide support for that corruption ¹.

Executive Order 13818

The President signed Executive Order 13818 on 20 December 2017 ³. It declared a national emergency, finding that serious human rights abuse and corruption around the world pose "an unusual and extraordinary threat" to the national security, foreign policy and economy of the United States ³. It cites IEEPA, the National Emergencies Act, the Global Magnitsky Act and 8 U.S.C. 1182(f) ³.

The order reaches foreign persons responsible for or complicit in "serious human rights abuse", and current or former officials, or persons acting for them, involved in corruption, including misappropriation of state assets, expropriation for personal gain, corruption tied to government contracts or natural resources, and bribery ³. It covers leaders or officials of entities involved in such conduct, persons who materially assist it, and entities owned or controlled by blocked persons ³.

What designation does

Under a 2017 presidential memorandum noted in the U.S. Code, the Secretary of the Treasury handles the financial measures and the Secretary of State handles the visa measures ¹. OFAC lists removal actions under the program dated 12 December 2025, 27 March 2026 and 28 May 2026 ⁴.

Property and interests in property of a designated person that are in the United States or held by a U.S. person are blocked ^1,3.
The order bars contributions of funds, goods or services by, to or for the benefit of a blocked person ³.
Entry into the United States as an immigrant or nonimmigrant is suspended for persons who meet the order's criteria ³. The Act provides for inadmissibility and revocation of any visa already issued ¹.
Designated persons need not be given prior notice ³.
Transactions that evade the order, and conspiracies to violate it, are prohibited ³.

How it differs from Section 7031(c)

A Global Magnitsky designation carries both a visa measure and a block on property under IEEPA ^1,3. The Act states that the IEEPA national emergency requirement does not apply to these sanctions ¹. Section 7031(c) is a separate authority with its own page on this site, which sets out what a 7031(c) designation does.

Examples from Treasury releases

Date	Country	Action as described by Treasury
21 December 2017 ⁵	The Gambia, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Burma, Guatemala, Nicaragua and others ⁵	First Global Magnitsky action. The release says the President's Annex named 13 persons and OFAC designated 39 affiliated individuals and entities. Names included Yahya Jammeh of The Gambia and businessman Dan Gertler, linked by Treasury to mining and oil deals in the Democratic Republic of the Congo ⁵.
10 October 2019 ⁶	South Africa ⁶	OFAC designated Ajay, Atul and Rajesh Gupta and their business associate Salim Essa under Executive Order 13818 as members of a corruption network ⁶.
15 August 2022 ⁷	Liberia ⁷	OFAC designated Nathaniel McGill, Minister of State for Presidential Affairs, Solicitor General Sayma Syrenius Cephus and National Port Authority managing director Bill Twehway ⁷.
4 March 2024 ⁸	Zimbabwe ⁸	OFAC designated 11 individuals, among them President Emmerson Mnangagwa, and three entities. The same day the Zimbabwe sanctions program was ended ⁸.

Common questions

Is Global Magnitsky the same as a visa ban?

No. It blocks property under IEEPA and bars dealings with the designated person, and it carries entry and visa measures ^1,3.

Does Global Magnitsky still apply after 2022?

Yes. Public Law 117-110 repealed the six-year sunset on 8 April 2022 ². OFAC continues to list the program and its actions ⁴.

Who decides Global Magnitsky designations?

Treasury handles the financial sanctions and State handles the visa sanctions, under a 2017 presidential delegation ¹. OFAC publishes the designations ⁴.

Which regulations apply?

The Global Magnitsky Sanctions Regulations at 31 CFR part 583 ⁴.

Have African officials been designated?

Yes. Treasury releases cover officials and businesspeople from The Gambia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, South Africa, Liberia and Zimbabwe, among others ^5,6 ^7,8.

Rules and fees change. Check the official site linked above before you apply or pay. Spotted an error? Email [email protected] with the official link.

Sources

OFAC sanctions explained
What OFAC sanctions are, the legal basis under IEEPA, the SDN List, blocking, the 50 percent rule, licenses and how delisting works.
Section 7031(c) designations explained
How Section 7031(c) of the annual State Department appropriations act bars officials and their families from US entry and how it differs from OFAC.
How to check a name against US, UK, EU and UN sanctions lists
Where to search OFAC, UK, EU and UN sanctions lists, how fuzzy matching works, what a match means, and why visa records cannot be searched.
US visa restrictions under INA section 212(a)(3)(C)
How the foreign policy visa ground in 8 U.S.C. 1182(a)(3)(C) works, who decides, how visa records are kept confidential and what it covers.