In particular, questions 57-61 regarding insurance were updated:
57. Are insurers that are persons subject to U.S. jurisdiction allowed to provide travel
insurance to persons subject to U.S. jurisdiction engaged in authorized travel to Cuba?Yes. See 31 CFR § 515.560.58. May persons subject to U.S. jurisdiction engaged in authorized travel to Cuba obtain travel
insurance from a third-country vendor?Yes. See 31 CFR § 515.560.59. May U.S. insurers issue policies and pay claims related to group health, life, and travel
insurance on behalf of third-country nationals traveling to or within Cuba?Yes, provided that the insurance policy is as global policy, and not specific to the third-country
national’s travel to or within Cuba. Section 515.580 of the CACR authorizes persons subject to
U.S. jurisdiction to issue or provide global health, life, or travel insurance policies for individuals
ordinarily resident in a country outside of Cuba who travel to or within Cuba, regardless of
whether the insurance policy is issued only to that individual or to a group, such as to all
employees of a particular company. For instance, a U.S. insurer may pay medical claims pursuant
to a group health insurance policy to or on behalf of a covered third-country national injured
while traveling in Cuba. However, this provision does not authorize a person subject to U.S.
jurisdiction to issue an insurance policy that is specific to travel to Cuba. A separate provision of
the CACR, 31 CFR § 515.560, authorizes the provision of health, life, and travel insurance-
related services that are specific to Cuba for authorized U.S. travelers.60. May U.S. insurers, either directly or through third-country subsidiaries, issue policies, or
pay insurance or reinsurance claims related to non-U.S. persons providing goods or services
that facilitate travel by third-country nationals from a third country to Cuba?Other than certain global health, life, or travel insurance policies for individuals authorized by 31
C.F.R. § 515.580, absent specific authorization from OFAC, U.S. insurers and their subsidiaries
are not permitted to issue policies, provide reinsurance coverage, or pay insurance or reinsurance
claims related to non-U.S. persons, including entities such as foreign airlines, providing goods or
services that facilitate travel by third-country nationals from a third country to Cuba.61. Are insurance policies that are issued to a “group” (e.g., an employer and its employees)
authorized by the CACR?Section 515.580 of the CACR authorizes global insurance policies covering individuals ordinarily
resident in a country outside of Cuba traveling to Cuba. The policy may be issued to a group,
such as all employees of a company. The “global” requirement means it cannot be specific to
travel to Cuba. For example, it does not authorize an individual travel policy issued to a traveler
specifically to cover a trip to Cuba. It also does not authorize issuing a policy to a non-U.S. travel
agent specifically to cover its traveler clients where the travel agency is solely in the business of
planning trips to Cuba.
Mr. Watchlist thinks it's bogus to have an FAQ document that says “see CFR 515.560” and the like. You have to assume some of the readers are not intimately familiar with the regulations. If you're going to do that, you should provide a link to the section, not just throw the reader to the dharks.
This reminds Mr. Watchlist of the Fall OFAC Symposium. None of the sessions were a blur of references to the Code of Federal Regulations (CFR) – except the Cuba one. Mr. Watchlist was looking at his watch a lot during that session – totally indecipherable.
Links:
OFAC Cuba Sanctions FAQ document
Posted with BlogsyFiled under: Cuba Sanctions, Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ), OFAC Updates, Sanctions Regulations
