With the 18th sanctions package, the European Union is tightening its financial measures against Russia and Belarus. The previous SWIFT exclusion is being replaced by a comprehensive transaction ban that prohibits not only technical communication channels but also any economic interaction with listed financial institutions.

On July 18, 2025, the European Union (EU) adopted its 18th sanctions package against Russia, which entered into force on July 20, 2025. We present the key changes.

The European Union, with Regulation (EU) 2025/1227 of 17 June 2025, has made far-reaching changes to import duties on fertilizers and agricultural goods from Russia and Belarus. Russian and Belarusian products can no longer be imported under tariff quotas; duties on these goods are drastically increased. Duties on fertilizers are being gradually introduced.

As part of the Omnibus IV package, the European Commission proposed a regulation on May 21, 2025, to postpone the application of the due diligence obligations under Regulation (EU) 2023/1542 (Battery Regulation) to August 27, 2027, while simultaneously giving the European Commission more time to publish the guidelines on the specifics of the due diligence obligations. The proposal also includes relief measures for small and mid-cap companies. The Council already agreed to the new date on June 19, 2025. We will keep you updated.

Anyone who thought the Omnibus Directive would stop short of the regulation on fluorinated greenhouse gases – Regulation (EU) 2024/573 (hereinafter referred to as the “F-Gas Regulation”) – was disappointed. The European Commission also published a proposal for the Omnibus IV package on May 21, 2025, which followed the proposals for Omnibus Packages I and II of February 26, 2025, and Omnibus Package III of May 14, 2025.

The European Court of Justice (ECJ) has ruled that formal errors in the re-importation of goods – such as failure to present or declare them – do not preclude VAT exemption, provided there is no intent to deceive (Case C-125/24). The case focused on the return of competition horses without proper customs formalities. The ECJ emphasizes the primacy of substantive requirements and protects bona fide economic operators from tax disadvantages in cases of mere negligence. The ruling strengthens legal certainty in EU customs law beyond the specific case at hand.

In response to the fall of the Assad regime, the European Union (EU) has largely lifted the sanctions previously in place against Syria. We summarize the changes to the sanctions regime against Syria.

On 22 May, the European Commission published the long-awaited benchmarking system pursuant to Article 29 of Regulation (EU) 1115/2023 and the methodology on which it is based.

On May 20, 2025, the European Union (EU) adopted its 17th sanctions package against Russia. We present the key changes introduced by this 17th package.