OFAC Sanctions Screening API

Base URL: https://api.techcompass.com.au — Screen names against the US Treasury OFAC SDN list with fuzzy matching and immutable audit logging.

About this Dataset

The OFAC Sanctions Screening API screens names against the US Treasury’s Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) Specially Designated Nationals and Blocked Persons (SDN) List — the primary US federal sanctions list and one of the most widely referenced sanctions lists globally.

The OFAC SDN List

The SDN List names individuals, entities, vessels, and aircraft whose assets are blocked and with whom US persons are generally prohibited from dealing. It is updated multiple times per week as OFAC designates new targets or removes previously sanctioned parties.

As of mid-2026 the SDN List contains approximately 19,152 entries. Each entry includes: primary name, all known aliases, entity type (individual / entity / vessel / aircraft), sanction programme codes (UKRAINE-EO13662, SDGT, IRAN, DPRK, and 50+ others), and — where available — nationality, date of birth, and physical addresses.

Tech Compass syncs the SDN List daily via the official US Treasury data feed. The sdn_list_date field on every response reflects the exact publication date of the list version used for the screen.

Fuzzy Name Matching

Sanctions screening is only effective if it identifies transliterated names, partial names, and common name variants. The Tech Compass screening engine uses a multi-stage fuzzy matching algorithm combining Jaro-Winkler similarity, token-set ratio matching, and alias expansion. Each match is assigned a confidence level: exact, high, medium, or low.

Regulatory Context

US persons — and non-US financial institutions with US nexus — are legally required to screen counterparties against the OFAC SDN List before entering transactions. Civil penalties reach up to the greater of $368,136 per transaction or twice the transaction value. FinCEN and OFAC guidance require institutions to document that screening was performed against a current list — the sdn_list_date and immutable screen_id in every API response provide this audit evidence.

Data Source

Source: US Treasury OFAC SDN List. US Government public domain — unrestricted commercial use.

Authentication

All endpoints except /v1/us/sanctions/ofac/list-version require an API key:

Authorization: ApiKey tc_live_<your_key>

The /list-version endpoint is public and requires no authentication — useful for health checks and verifying SDN list currency.

Tiers

Confidence Score Reference

The screening engine uses normalised Levenshtein distance and alias expansion to assign a confidence score to each match. All four levels return matches; the score helps your workflow decide when to escalate for manual review.

Immutable Audit Trail

Every call to /ofac/screen creates an immutable record in the ofac_screens table before the response is returned. The record captures:

• The exact name screened (query_name)
• Entity type filter applied
• Number of matches returned
• Highest confidence score found
• The SDN list date active at the time of screening
• The API key and user ID that made the request
• UTC timestamp

The meta.request_id in the response corresponds to the audit log entry. This provides a complete, tamper-evident record suitable for regulatory reporting under BSA/AML requirements.

SDN List Date

The sdn_list_date field indicates which version of the OFAC SDN list was active when a screen was performed. This matters for audit purposes: regulators may ask which list version was used at the time of onboarding.

• data_lineage.sdn_list_date — the list date in the current response
• ofac_screens.sdn_list_date — the list date recorded in the audit log

Error Reference

Endpoints

GET /v1/us/sanctions/ofac/screen

Screen a name against the full OFAC SDN list using fuzzy matching. Returns all matches above the minimum similarity threshold, sorted by confidence descending. Creates an immutable audit record before returning.

Example: screening a known SDN name

curl "https://api.techcompass.com.au/v1/us/sanctions/ofac/screen?name=Ayman+al-Zawahiri&entity_type=individual" \
  -H "Authorization: ApiKey tc_live_<your_key>"

{
  "data": {
    "screened_at": "2026-05-10T07:00:00Z",
    "query_name": "Ayman al-Zawahiri",
    "entity_type_filter": "individual",
    "total_matches": 1,
    "sdn_list_date": "2026-06-19",
    "matches": [
      {
        "uid": "SDGT-1234",
        "name": "AYMAN AL-ZAWAHIRI",
        "matched_on": "primary_name",
        "confidence": "exact",
        "entity_type": "individual",
        "programs": ["SDGT"],
        "aliases": ["AYMAN MUHAMMAD RABI AL-ZAWAHIRI", "DR. AYMAN AL ZAWAHIRI"]
      }
    ]
  },
  "meta": {
    "request_id": "c3d4e5f6-...",
    "cached": false
  },
  "data_lineage": {
    "source": "US Treasury OFAC SDN List",
    "source_url": "https://home.treasury.gov/policy-issues/financial-sanctions/specially-designated-nationals-and-blocked-persons-list-sdn-human-readable-lists",
    "license": "US Government Public Domain",
    "retrieved_at": "2026-05-10T07:00:00Z",
    "sdn_list_date": "2026-06-19",
    "request_id": "c3d4e5f6-..."
  }
}

Example: screening a clean name

curl "https://api.techcompass.com.au/v1/us/sanctions/ofac/screen?name=Jane+Smith" \
  -H "Authorization: ApiKey tc_live_<your_key>"

{
  "data": {
    "screened_at": "2026-05-10T07:00:00Z",
    "query_name": "Jane Smith",
    "entity_type_filter": null,
    "total_matches": 0,
    "sdn_list_date": "2026-06-19",
    "matches": []
  },
  "meta": { "request_id": "d4e5f6a7-..." },
  "data_lineage": { "sdn_list_date": "2026-06-19", ... }
}

Errors: 400, 401, 403, 429

GET /v1/us/sanctions/ofac/entity/{uid}

Return the full SDN record for a specific OFAC UID. Use this to retrieve complete entity data (all aliases, addresses, nationalities, dates of birth) after a screen returns a match.

curl "https://api.techcompass.com.au/v1/us/sanctions/ofac/entity/SDGT-1234" \
  -H "Authorization: ApiKey tc_live_<your_key>"

{
  "data": {
    "uid": "SDGT-1234",
    "name": "AYMAN AL-ZAWAHIRI",
    "aliases": ["AYMAN MUHAMMAD RABI AL-ZAWAHIRI", "DR. AYMAN AL ZAWAHIRI"],
    "entity_type": "individual",
    "programs": ["SDGT"],
    "addresses": [{ "country": "Afghanistan" }],
    "nationalities": ["Egyptian"],
    "dates_of_birth": ["1951-06-19"],
    "place_of_birth": "Giza, Egypt",
    "remarks": "DOB 19 Jun 1951; POB Giza, Egypt...",
    "sdn_list_date": "2026-06-19",
    "date_added": "2001-10-12",
    "last_updated": "2022-07-31",
    "fetched_at": "2026-05-10T06:00:00Z"
  },
  "meta": { "request_id": "e5f6a7b8-..." },
  "data_lineage": { ... }
}

Errors: 401, 403, 404, 429

GET /v1/us/sanctions/ofac/list-version

Returns the current SDN list date and total record count. No authentication required. Use this endpoint to verify SDN list currency before relying on screening results.

curl "https://api.techcompass.com.au/v1/us/sanctions/ofac/list-version"

{
  "sdn_list_date": "2026-06-19",
  "record_count": 19152,
  "source": "US Treasury OFAC",
  "license": "US Government Public Domain"
}

Common Use Cases

1. Customer onboarding screening

Who uses this: Banks, fintechs, and payment providers screening new customers at account opening.

curl "https://api.techcompass.com.au/v1/us/sanctions/ofac/screen?name=First+Last+Name&entity_type=individual" \
  -H "Authorization: ApiKey YOUR_API_KEY"

2. Counterparty due diligence

Who uses this: Trade finance teams, correspondent banking compliance, and payment processors screening entities before transactions.

curl "https://api.techcompass.com.au/v1/us/sanctions/ofac/screen?name=Acme+Trading+LLC&entity_type=entity" \
  -H "Authorization: ApiKey YOUR_API_KEY"

3. Ongoing monitoring

Who uses this: Compliance teams re-screening existing customers when the SDN list is updated.

# Check current list version first
curl "https://api.techcompass.com.au/v1/us/sanctions/ofac/list-version"

# If sdn_list_date changed since last check, re-run screens for active customers

4. Filtering by entity type

Who uses this: Maritime compliance teams screening vessels, aviation compliance screening aircraft.

curl "https://api.techcompass.com.au/v1/us/sanctions/ofac/screen?name=Vessel+Name&entity_type=vessel" \
  -H "Authorization: ApiKey YOUR_API_KEY"

5. Audit log review and regulatory reporting

Who uses this: Compliance officers producing evidence for regulatory examiners that sanctions screening was performed.

Data Source