How do I run a batch OFAC screen, and how is the date of birth used?

Last updated: September 14, 2026

Batch OFAC screening lets you screen a list of names in one upload and download the results as a file. It is the right tool for periodic re-screening of an existing customer base.

How it works:

  1. Upload a CSV to POST /ofac/searches/batches. The file must be 5 MB or smaller and needs two columns, entity_name and reference_id. The reference ID is your own identifier and is echoed back on each result so you can join them to your records.

  2. Optionally include a date_of_birth column in YYYY-MM-DD format. Values can be left blank for rows where you do not have one.

  3. Set the similarity_threshold on the request if you want something other than the default. Higher is stricter.

  4. Poll GET /ofac/searches/batches/{batch_id} until the batch is complete, then fetch the results file from GET /ofac/searches/batches/{batch_id}/download. Results are one line per input row in JSON Lines format, with the matches and their similarity scores.

How the date of birth is used. It is a filter on top of the name match:

  • If a list entry has a recorded date of birth and it does not equal the one you supplied, the entry is dropped.

  • If the entry has only a birth year, the year is compared instead.

  • If the entry has no birth information at all, it is kept. A name-only match can still appear, so a supplied date of birth reduces false positives but does not eliminate them.

  • Rows with no date of birth are matched on name only.