Polish Parliament's Lower Chamber Approves Sanctions Legislation Including Cryptocurrency Asset Freezes
The legislation has advanced to the Senate for consideration and aims to expand the criteria for designating individuals and entities on Poland's domestic sanctions registry.
The lower chamber of Poland's parliament has given approval to legislation that would expand the nation's sanctions infrastructure and specifically enumerate cryptocurrency assets as among the financial resources that government authorities have the power to freeze during sanctions enforcement.
On Friday, the Sejm voted to pass the government-supported Act on Restrictive Measures by a margin of 240 votes in favor to 202 against, with a single abstention recorded, before sending the measure forward to the Senate on Monday, as documented in official parliamentary proceedings. The legislation specifically enumerates crypto assets, as they are characterized within the European Union's Markets in Crypto-Assets Regulation (MiCA), as part of the financial resources that government authorities would have the capability to freeze during the application of sanctions measures.
Under the proposed legislation, Poland's interior minister would be responsible for administering the national sanctions registry, with sanctions designation determinations becoming effective on the day following the publication of a designation by authorities. Those individuals and corporate entities subject to sanctions would retain the right to contest the determination through administrative court proceedings, though the legislation permits enforcement to proceed even prior to a judicial determination.
The country currently operates a national sanctions registry established through legislation enacted in 2022 that was designed to combat assistance for Russia's military invasion of Ukraine. The proposed legislation would broaden the justifications for applying national sanctions to encompass specific categories of foreign interference activities and information manipulation operations that constitute a severe threat to the security of the nation.
The Senate now has a 30-day period within which to grant approval, propose amendments, or reject the proposed legislation. Should the upper chamber fail to take action within this timeframe, Poland's Constitution stipulates that the bill is deemed approved in the identical form as it was passed by the Sejm, which would permit it to advance to the president for final consideration.