UN delisting: the Ombudsperson and the Focal Point

Which route applies

The route depends on the list. The Ombudsperson reviews requests for removal from the ISIL (Da'esh) and Al-Qaida Sanctions List only ¹. The Focal Point accepts delisting requests for the other Security Council sanctions committee lists and sends ISIL (Da'esh) and Al-Qaida petitioners to the Ombudsperson ⁴. Other petitioners can use the Focal Point or apply through their state of residence or citizenship ⁴.

The Secretary-General appoints the Ombudsperson, who is described as independent and impartial ¹. The mandate was extended by resolutions 1989 (2011), 2083 (2012), 2161 (2014), 2253 (2015), 2368 (2017), 2610 (2021) and 2734 (2024) ¹. Vera Nkwate Ngassa has served as Ombudsperson since 16 December 2025 ¹.

The Ombudsperson process in three phases

Requests are handled under Annex II of resolution 2734 (2024) ². The Ombudsperson first checks that the request addresses the listing criteria. A repeat request must include additional material ².

How the Committee decides

The decision rule depends on the recommendation. If the Ombudsperson recommends keeping the listing, the name stays listed. A Committee member can still submit a delisting request, which is decided by consensus ².

If the Ombudsperson recommends delisting, the name is removed. The only exception is a Committee decision by consensus within 60 days to keep the sanctions ². Without consensus, the Chair can refer the question to the Security Council at a member's request, and the Council has a further 60 days. Sanctions stay in place during that time ². The Ombudsperson page says the Committee has not overturned a recommendation to date ¹.

The Focal Point process

• Receipt and screening. The Focal Point can return requests that do not address the designation criteria or repeat earlier requests without new information ⁴.
• Information gathering for 4 months, extendable by up to 2 months. Panels of experts and monitoring teams can be asked for information ⁴.
• Dialogue for 2 months, extendable by up to 2 months, ending in a confidential report to the committee ⁴.
• Committee discussion and decision within 2 months, after which the Focal Point informs the petitioner ⁴.

Case figures

The Ombudsperson's report S/2024/696 covers 29 March to 26 September 2024 ³. As at 26 September 2024, it reports 111 petitions accepted since the Office was set up and 102 cases fully processed ³. Of these, 71 requests were granted and 31 denied ³. The granted requests led to the delisting of 66 individuals and 28 entities, and one entity was removed as an alias of a listed entity ³. Four individuals were delisted by the Committee before the process ended, one petition was withdrawn after the Ombudsperson's report and four cases were pending ³. The same report says the Office has completed 108 cases and that four cases are pending, which together make 112, not 111. It says 102 of the 111 cases were brought by individuals alone, two by an individual with one or more entities and six by entities alone, which make 110. A footnote says three cases that became moot are excluded from the count of completed reports. The report does not reconcile these totals, and the figures are given here as printed ³.

The Focal Point page links to statistics pages but carries no figures itself ⁴.

Other tasks and national routes

The Focal Point receives mistaken identity communications and forwards them to the relevant committee ⁴. It receives exemption requests for the ISIL (Da'esh) and Al-Qaida and 1988 lists, and it reports to the Security Council twice a year ⁴.

States can act as well. UK guidance lets a UN-listed person ask the UK to use its best endeavours to secure removal from the relevant UN list ⁵.