Treasury Puts Iran's Auto and Rail Sectors Under Sanctions Order

The Treasury Department published a determination in the Federal Register on October 13 that puts Iran's automotive and rail sectors under Executive Order 13902, the January 10, 2020 order on Iran. The determination was issued and took effect on October 1, 2026, and the Office of Foreign Assets Control posted it on its website that day, before the Federal Register publication.

Executive Order 13902, titled Imposing Sanctions With Respect to Additional Sectors of Iran, was issued under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, according to the notice. Section 1(a)(i) blocks, with some exceptions, property in the United States or in the control of U.S. persons belonging to anyone the Treasury Secretary, in consultation with the Secretary of State, determines operates in Iran's construction, mining, manufacturing or textiles sectors, or in any other sector Treasury names.

The new determination, signed by OFAC Director Bradley T. Smith in consultation with the State Department, extends that authority to the automotive and rail sectors. The text says any person determined to operate in those sectors is subject to sanctions under section 1(a)(i). Smith wrote that the step further addresses the unusual and extraordinary threat to U.S. national security, foreign policy and economy described in the order. The document was filed October 9 and appears in Volume 91, Number 196 of the Federal Register.