Screen Individuals and Companies

Getting accurate results from sanctions screening depends on providing the right data points in the right fields. Unverified or low-quality data can generate false positives that add noise to your workflow.

This guide explains which inputs matter most when screening individuals and companies in sanctions.io, how the system uses them, and how to structure your searches for accurate, actionable results. Each section includes practical examples for the most common scenarios you're likely to encounter.

Before running any search, you'll need to configure two settings that apply to every query:

• data_source — the watchlist or combination of watchlists you want to screen against (e.g. OFAC, UN, EU).
• min_score — the minimum confidence threshold a result must meet to be returned. A lower score casts a wider net; a higher score filters for stronger matches only.

Getting these two settings right for your use case is the foundation of a reliable screening workflow.

Applies to: Screening Portal • Monitoring Portal • API

Topics Covered

→ Screening an Individual

→ Screening an Individual and Wallet Address

→ Screening a Company

Screening an Individual

The full name is always the starting point for screening an individual. sanctions.io's name-matching technology handles transliterations, spelling variations, out-of-order name components, and aliases automatically.

Adding additional identifiers significantly improves precision and reduces false positives.

Key Data Points to Screen

• Full Name - the primary search input. Enter this in the name field. Use the full legal name when available; avoid job titles, special characters, or combined names of individuals.
• Date of Birth - Helps distinguish between individuals with similar names, particularly in PEP screening.
• Country - nationality or country of residence.
• Passport, National ID, or Email address- use in the identifier field to further narrow results, particularly for high-risk cases.

Scenario A - Name only

If the full name is the only information you have, that is enough to run a search.

Scenario B - Name and supporting data

Date of birth, country, or an identifier will improve accuracy and reduce false positives. Include these fields whenever the data is available and reliable - ideally when it has been collected through an ID verification process - to avoid noise in the results.

Screening an Individual and Wallet Address

If you are screening an individual associated with crypto activity, you can add a wallet address to the identifier field. The system will match it against wallet addresses listed in sanctions records.

Screening a Company

For companies, the registered entity name is the primary input. sanctions.io automatically normalizes common legal suffixes such as LLC, Inc., Ltd., and GmbH - so there is no need to remove or adjust them before screening.

Adding a country of incorporation or operation helps narrow results, especially for entities with common or generic names.

Key Data Points to Screen

• Registered Name - the primary search input. Enter this in the name field. Use the full registered name; avoid combining multiple names or adding business descriptions.
• Country - country of incorporation or operation. Reduces false positives when multiple entities share a similar name.
• Tax ID or Registration Number - Enter in the identifier field when available to confirm or exclude a match with greater confidence.

Scenario A - Company name only

Scenario B - Company name and supporting data

We're here to help!

If you have any questions or require further assistance, please don't hesitate to reach out to our support team.

• Chat: Available directly on the Help Center page
• Email: help@sanctions.io