Any shipper paying fees to Iran for passage through the Strait of Hormuz, including charitable donations to organizations such as the Iranian Red Crescent Society, risks facing punitive sanctions, the U.S. Department of the Treasury warned on Friday, UNN reports, citing Reuters.
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Tehran has proposed introducing fees or duties for vessels passing through the strait as part of proposals to end the war with Israel and the United States.
An advisory from the U.S. Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) stated that the U.S. is aware of Iran's demands for payments for safe passage through the strait.
The Office warned companies this week that paying the fees exposes them to risk, but clarified on Friday that payments disguised as charity or indirect payments are not permitted.
At least one payment of $2 million was reported for a vessel's passage through the strait.
OFAC stated that the demands could include several payment options, including fiat currency, digital assets, offset agreements, informal swaps, or other in-kind payments, such as nominally charitable donations made to the Iranian Red Crescent Society, Bonyad Mostazafan, or to Iranian embassy accounts.
"OFAC is issuing this advisory to warn U.S. and non-U.S. persons of the sanctions risks associated with making these payments or requesting assurances from the Iranian regime for safe passage," the statement said. "These risks exist regardless of the method of payment."
OFAC also imposed new sanctions on what it claims are three Iranian foreign exchange houses, which it says conduct billions of dollars in transactions annually, and their associated front companies.
The Office also imposed Iran-related sanctions on the Panama-flagged petroleum products tanker NEW FUSION. "We will relentlessly target the regime’s ability to raise, move, and repatriate funds, and we will pursue anyone who facilitates Tehran’s attempts to circumvent sanctions," said U.S. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent.
Analysts have long said that China, the largest buyer of Iranian oil, will continue to purchase oil until the U.S. imposes sanctions on its banks. However, such a move could damage relations between Washington and Beijing.