Canada reimposes sanctions on 11 Iranian entities over nuclear, missile programs

• The measures target entities involved in proliferation-"sensitive nuclear activities."
• The 11 entities were originally removed from Canada's sanctions list in 2016 following the JCPOA nuclear accord.
• The announcement coincided with the G7 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Paris.

Canada has reimposed sanctions against 11 Iranian entities linked to Tehran’s nuclear expansion, ballistic missile development, or to the "financing of its malign activities," Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand announced on Tuesday.

The announcement was made on the sidelines of the G7 Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Paris, aligning Ottawa's enforcement posture with international partners seeking to restrict Iran’s access to "sensitive" dual-use technology and global financial channels.

The 11 designated entities had previously been delisted by Ottawa in 2016 following the implementation of the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), when Iran agreed to curb aspects of its atomic work in exchange for international sanctions relief.

Global Affairs Canada noted that the reversal comes in direct response to Tehran’s continuous refusal to cooperate with verification efforts led by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA).

"Canada’s position is unequivocal: Iran must never be allowed to obtain a nuclear weapon," Anand said in a statement. "We will continue to work with our G7 partners and the broader international community toward a comprehensive, verifiable and durable agreement that addresses Iran’s nuclear program and strengthens regional and international security."

Under the Special Economic Measures Act and related legislation, including the Justice for Victims of Corrupt Foreign Officials Act, Canada has now implemented 25 rounds of sanctions targeting 237 Iranian individuals and 276 entities, bringing the cumulative total to more than 500 sanctioned targets since 2010.

The United States also moved in tandem to disrupt Iranian "illicit" financing networks, with the US Department of the Treasury announcing sanctions against eight money services businesses operating across Canada.

US authorities accused the firms of functioning as financial conduits for Tehran, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), and international narcotics trafficking networks.

Executed under "Operation Economic Outcast," a federal initiative launched in August to dismantle cryptocurrency corridors and third-country financial hubs used by Iran to bypass sanctions, the US enforcement action alleged that the targeted Canadian businesses exchanged Iranian rials and conventional fiat currency for digital assets.

According to the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC), the firms facilitated cross-border transactions involving state-aligned Iranian digital asset exchanges, including Nobitex, Wallex, Bitpin, and Shelbit, as well as digital wallets directly tied to the IRGC.

US officials also revealed that several of the designated entities laundered proceeds for Ryan Wedding, a high-profile Canadian narcotics trafficker arrested in January 2026.

The US sanctions were conducted in close coordination with the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), and Canada’s national financial intelligence agency, the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC).

"Canada cannot be a safe haven for illicit financial facilitators that provide sanctions evasion services to the Iranian regime and its proxies," US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said. "Treasury will pursue and disrupt the Iranian regime’s financial channels anywhere in the world."