The Cuban government has enacted a new law granting the Ministry of the Interior and the Central Bank of Cuba joint authority to freeze financial accounts, property, and other assets on the island without prior notice to the owners.
Published on Monday, May 18, 2026, in the Gaceta Oficial de la República de Cuba, Resolution 6/2026 establishes a specialized executive group led by the Technical Directorate of Investigations (DTI). This group is tasked with coordinating state operations to prevent and combat money laundering, terrorist financing, and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.
According to Article 3 of the decree, the freezing mechanism entails the “immediate retention or prohibition of the transfer, conversion, disposition, or movement of funds or other assets, including virtual assets, property, equipment, or other instruments.”
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The regulation specifies that these measures apply to individuals or entities identified under national lists or international designations.
The legal framework outlines that the freezing of assets is triggered by “investigative processes regarding natural or juridical persons based on suspicions” or the existence of police, judicial, or intelligence reports linking an individual to prohibited financial activities, “without necessarily requiring a criminal trial.”
Furthermore, financial intelligence products generated during these investigations are classified as confidential and “are not documented as evidence in the Preparatory Phase” of legal proceedings.
The resolution mandates an active information exchange between the Ministry of the Interior’s enforcement branches and the General Directorate of Financial Operations Investigation of the Central Bank of Cuba to execute the asset seizures and monitor financial intelligence.
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