On 16 January, the UN nuclear watchdog – the International Atomic Energy Agency, confirmed that Iran fulfilled its obligations under the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA) with the permanent members of the UN Security Council plus Germany and the EU. The JCPOA was reached in July 2015 and while Iran worked on the implementation on its side, the UN, the US and also the EU Council adopted legal acts providing for lifting of nuclear-related sanctions against Iran. These acts became effective last Saturday upon successful verification by the IAEA. Iran thus returns to inter-bank SWIFT mechanism, to the oil market and European companies are once again allowed to do business almost as usual with Iranian companies. Mainly aviation and insurance industries are expected to benefit from this in first instance. On the other hand, the sanctions will be lifted only as long as Iran cooperates and there is an automatic snap-back mechanism in case of a serious breach. Also, sanctions linked to Iranian human rights abuses remain in place. For more on the EU side, click here.