Screening
Sanctions screening without the noise
How sanctions screening works, why exact-match fails, and how fuzzy matching and human review keep it usable.
The FLIORE Compliance Desk
Family-office compliance research
5 min read
Updated 2026-07-01
Key takeaways
- Sanctions screening checks parties against consolidated watchlists.
- Exact matching misses variants; fuzzy matching over-flags — the answer is scored matching.
- Screening must be ongoing, not just at onboarding.
The task
Sanctions screening checks the people and entities you deal with against consolidated lists — UN, EU, OFAC, national regimes. A hit can carry criminal liability, so the duty is serious.
Why matching is hard
Names appear in different scripts, transliterations and spellings. Exact matching misses real hits; naive fuzzy matching floods you with false positives. A scored approach — such as Jaro-Winkler distance with a threshold — surfaces plausible candidates for human judgement.
FAQ
Is one screening at onboarding enough?
No. Designations change; ongoing re-screening is required.
Sources
- EU Consolidated List — Sanctions designations.
- OFAC SDN List — US sanctions.
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