Maritime Sanctions Data
Flag-of-convenience reliance by sanctions program
Data as of 2026-10-05 · source: U.S. Treasury OFAC Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list
Flag-of-convenience reliance varies sharply by sanctions program: 88.5% of the North Korea (DPRK)-program fleet flies a shell-jurisdiction flag versus 23.3% of the Venezuela-program fleet — across 1,486 OFAC-designated vessels with a recorded flag (data as of 2026-10-05).
| Sanctions regime (its flag-of-convenience rate) | flag-of-convenience vessels | % of total | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Iran — 65% flag of convenience | 412 | 53.9% | |
| Russia — 41.7% flag of convenience | 177 | 23.1% | |
| North Korea (DPRK) — 88.5% flag of convenience | 85 | 11.1% | |
| Terror-finance / proliferation — 79.2% flag of convenience | 76 | 9.9% | |
| Venezuela — 23.3% flag of convenience | 14 | 1.8% | |
| Cuba — 33.3% flag of convenience | 1 | 0.1% | |
| Total | 765 | 100% |
Methodology
- A cross-tabulation of the existing by-flag and by-program datasets: for each OFAC sanctions program, the share of its flagged vessels that fly a Tier-3 flag-of-convenience / shell-jurisdiction register (the same jurisdiction-tier model the by-flag dataset uses).
- The % in each row label is that regime's OWN flag-of-convenience rate (its FoC vessels / its flagged vessels). The table is restricted to the flag-of-convenience fleet, so the row count is the regime's FoC vessel count and the row percentage is its share of the whole flag-of-convenience fleet.
- Computed over the 1,486 OFAC-designated vessels that carry a recorded flag in the SDN feed; each vessel is assigned to one strongest sanctions regime.
Source: U.S. Treasury OFAC Specially Designated Nationals (SDN) list. Computed by the same ArcNautical engine behind arcnautical.com/check (commit bd48942d1). Full scoring detail: methodology.
FAQ
Which sanctions program relies most on flags of convenience?
As of 2026-10-05, the North Korea (DPRK)-program fleet has the highest flag-of-convenience rate (88.5% of its flagged vessels fly a shell-jurisdiction register), versus 23.3% for the Venezuela-program fleet.
How is "flag of convenience" defined?
A registry classified Tier 3 by ArcNautical's jurisdiction-tier model — a flag-of-convenience / tax-haven register (e.g. Panama, Marshall Islands, Liberia) where beneficial-ownership disclosure is deliberately restricted. It is the same definition the ArcNautical vessel dossier and the by-flag dataset use.