UK permits emergency aviation payments to sanctioned Belarus operator
HM Treasury’s sanctions office permits certain UK aircraft operators to pay designated Belarus air navigation provider Belaeronavigatsia for services required during emergencies, subject to reporting and recordkeeping conditions.
LONDON, December 15, 2023 — HM Treasury has preserved a narrow payment route for UK-registered aircraft forced to land in Belarus or use its airspace to protect passengers or aircraft safety.
General Licence INT/2021/554388 allows air carriers licensed by the Civil Aviation Authority and private aircraft operators to pay Belaeronavigatsia for air traffic services provided during such emergencies. The state air navigation enterprise, based in Minsk, is designated under the U.K.’s Belarus sanctions regime and subject to asset-freeze measures.
Payments may be made directly or through a regulated financial institution or Eurocontrol. The permission covers air traffic instructions and safety information, airspace-flow management, navigation and surveillance communications, and support for search-and-rescue notifications.
Operators using the licence must report the emergency to HM Treasury within 14 days of payment. The report must include supporting evidence, the amount transferred, the payment route and the transfer date. Records of activity conducted under the licence must be kept for at least six years.
The licence was granted under the U.K.’s Russia and Belarus sanctions regulations and exempts covered activity from specified prohibitions only to the extent needed for the permitted payments. It does not authorize other transfers that would breach the Belarus regulations.
The permission took effect July 19, 2021, and the document was amended Dec. 15, 2023. HM Treasury may vary, revoke or suspend the licence at any time.
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