Give through experienced aid organisations
Aid organisations with partners on the ground know the rules, check recipients and document how funds are used. A donation for a specific purpose is the simplest route; three examples for Cuba follow below.
06
Chapter 6 · Routes
How aid still gets through
Humanitarian aid is permitted under almost all regimes. It often fails not because of the law but because of uncertainty. These routes are lawfully open; they do not replace checking the individual case.
Use humanitarian exemptions
Resolution 2664, the EU exemptions and the OFAC general licences permit humanitarian activities without individual authorisation. They apply to certain humanitarian actors such as UN organisations and recognised aid organisations, not to every private person; that is another reason why giving through an aid organisation is the simplest route.
Source: Resolution 2664 (2022); Government of Ireland, 31 Mar 2023; Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney
Check the recipient
Before every payment, check whether the recipient or its bank is listed. The EU shows all regimes on its sanctions map (www.sanctionsmap.eu); the lists in the legal acts are binding.
Source: EU Sanctions Map, accessed 3 Nov 2026
Apply for authorisation
Where an exemption requires authorisation, in Germany BAFA is competent for goods and services and the Bundesbank for funds. In-kind donations also need an export and customs check.
Source: German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs, page “Embargos”
Ask when refused
If a bank refuses a permitted payment, ask for the reason. Under the EBA guidelines, banks must assess the individual risk before refusing. Consumers are entitled to a basic account.
Source: EBA/GL/2023/04 of 31 Mar 2023; Section 31 ZKG
Know the Blocking Statute
Companies in the EU may not comply with the US laws on Cuba and Iran listed in its annex. Anyone disadvantaged by these laws informs the Commission within 30 days.
Source: Reg. (EC) No 2271/96
Note: this chapter describes the legal situation in general terms, as of 3 November 2026. It is not legal or sanctions advice. In the EU no funds or economic resources may be made available to listed persons and companies, not even as a donation; the humanitarian exemptions apply only to the actors and purposes named in them.
Aid organisations with projects in Cuba
Three aid organisations, one principle
These three aid organisations run projects in Cuba. At Helfen statt Blockieren, donations for the people of Cuba go directly to them, not to the organiser. The aid organisations do not thereby take any political position. The EU has no economic sanctions against Cuba.
EBM INTERNATIONAL
Project: microcredits in Cuba. “They are granted to women and men with a business idea that enables them to earn their own income.”
- Recipient
- EBM INTERNATIONAL KdöR
- IBAN
- DE69 5009 2100 0000 0468 68
- BIC
- GENODE51BH2
- Reference
- Kuba Microfinanzinvest P26570
jesuitenweltweit
Project “Hope for Cuba”: the Loyola Centres in Cuba, from Nuremberg above all the centres in Camagüey and Santiago de Cuba. According to the organisation, earmarked donations go to the project in full.
- Recipient
- jesuitenweltweit
- IBAN
- DE61 7509 0300 0005 1155 82
- BIC
- GENODEF1M05
- Reference
- X31251 Kuba HsB
NetzwerkInterRedCooperacion e.V.
Netzwerk InterRed Cooperacion e.V.
Project: a solar installation for a children’s hospital in Havana. According to the association, donations go to the solar project in full.
- Recipient
- Netzwerk InterRed Cooperacion e.V.
- IBAN
- DE15 3702 0500 0007 6002 00
- BIC
- BFSWDE33MNZ
- Reference
- Solaranlage Kinderkrankenhaus Havanna
Donation receipts are issued by each aid organisation. Logos of EBM INTERNATIONAL and jesuitenweltweit used with the organisations’ consent. Payment references as given by the organisations.
Helfen statt Blockieren 2026
Online workshops 16 to 19 November, culture week in Berlin 20 to 24 November, programme at www.helfen-statt-blockieren.com
Sources in this chapter
- Resolution 2664 (2022)
- Government of Ireland, 31 Mar 2023
- Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney
- EU Sanctions Map, accessed 3 Nov 2026
- German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs, page “Embargos”
- EBA/GL/2023/04 of 31 Mar 2023
- Section 31 ZKG
- Reg. (EC) No 2271/96
- Donation receipts are issued by each aid organisation. Logos of EBM INTERNATIONAL and jesuitenweltweit used with the organisations’ consent. Payment references as given by the organisations.
All references with dates are in the list of sources.