# Screen

> Screen a person or company against denied-party and sanctions lists with the border.bot API, with each possible match, the list that names it and why it matched, kept as evidence.

Source: https://border.bot/docs/screen
Last updated: 2026-10-20

> Documentation index: https://border.bot/llms.txt. Every page is Markdown at its URL + `.md`.


Screen checks a name, and a company if you give one, against denied-party lists: the US Consolidated Screening List, with OFAC's SDN list, the Entity List, the Denied Persons List and the other export-screening lists of Commerce, State and the Treasury. The [Screen page](https://border.bot/screen) explains how it works.

## Endpoints

| Endpoint | What it does |
| --- | --- |
| [`POST /v1/screen`](https://border.bot/docs/api/screen-party) | Screen one party |
| [`GET /v1/screen/checks`](https://border.bot/docs/api/list-screening-checks) | Your past checks, kept as evidence |

## Screen a party

```bash
curl -X POST https://api.border.bot/v1/screen \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer $BORDERBOT_TOKEN" \
  -H "Content-Type: application/json" \
  -H "Idempotency-Key: $(uuidgen)" \
  -d '{
    "name": "Northwind Maritime Holdings",
    "country": "AQ",
    "reference": "order-1042"
  }'
```

```javascript
const response = await fetch('https://api.border.bot/v1/screen', {
  method: 'POST',
  headers: {
    Authorization: `Bearer ${process.env.BORDERBOT_TOKEN}`,
    'Content-Type': 'application/json',
    'Idempotency-Key': crypto.randomUUID(),
  },
  body: JSON.stringify({
    "name": "Northwind Maritime Holdings",
    "country": "AQ",
    "reference": "order-1042"
  }),
});
const data = await response.json();
```

```python
import os, uuid

import requests

response = requests.post(
    "https://api.border.bot/v1/screen",
    headers={"Authorization": f"Bearer {os.environ['BORDERBOT_TOKEN']}", "Idempotency-Key": str(uuid.uuid4())},
    json={
        "name": "Northwind Maritime Holdings",
        "country": "AQ",
        "reference": "order-1042",
    },
)
data = response.json()
```

```php
<?php
$ch = curl_init('https://api.border.bot/v1/screen');
curl_setopt_array($ch, [
    CURLOPT_CUSTOMREQUEST => 'POST',
    CURLOPT_RETURNTRANSFER => true,
    CURLOPT_HTTPHEADER => [
        'Authorization: Bearer ' . getenv('BORDERBOT_TOKEN'),
        'Content-Type: application/json',
        'Idempotency-Key: ' . bin2hex(random_bytes(16)),
    ],
    CURLOPT_POSTFIELDS => json_encode([
        'name' => 'Northwind Maritime Holdings',
        'country' => 'AQ',
        'reference' => 'order-1042',
    ]),
]);
$data = json_decode(curl_exec($ch), true);
```

`name` is required. `company` screens an employer or trading name too, `country` flags matches with an address there, `type` keeps only `individual` or `entity` parties, and `reference` is kept with the check.

## What comes back

Each possible match has its `score` (0 to 1; matches start at 0.7, and 1 is an exact match of a name or alias), the name that matched, the list that names the party (`SDN`, `Entity List`…), its kind and issuer, whether the country matched, and the listed party itself: its names, type, programmes, addresses, identifiers and source. A match is a lead to review, not a verdict.

```json
{
  "data": {
    "matches": [
      {
        "score": 0.833,
        "matchedName": "Northwind Maritime Holdings",
        "query": "name",
        "list": "SDN",
        "listKind": "sanctions",
        "issuer": "US Treasury (OFAC)",
        "dataset": "US:parties",
        "countryMatch": true,
        "party": {
          "name": "Northwind Maritime Holdings",
          "altNames": [
            "NW Maritime"
          ],
          "type": "entity",
          "programs": [
            "EXAMPLE"
          ],
          "addresses": [
            {
              "address": "Port Example, AQ",
              "country": "AQ"
            }
          ],
          "sourceRef": "9001",
          "startDate": null,
          "endDate": null,
          "remarks": null,
          "sourceUrl": null,
          "identifiers": [],
          "countries": [],
          "birthDates": []
        }
      }
    ],
    "matchCount": 1,
    "searched": [
      {
        "dataset": "US:parties",
        "seq": 18
      }
    ],
    "screenedAt": "2026-10-20T09:30:00.000Z",
    "checkId": "01a15ac1-27d8-7ddf-b0bb-6c3fbe8bf828"
  },
  "credits": {
    "charged": 1,
    "remaining": 96,
    "usageId": "usg_01m5dc29tdkdmpffnd43jmg1w5"
  },
  "replayed": false
}
```

## Costs and limits

A check costs the screening price in credits (`GET /v1/pricing`), refunded if it fails. Up to 60 checks a minute per workspace. See [credits and retries](https://border.bot/docs/credits).

## Also from

- **MCP:** `screen_party` (see [MCP](https://border.bot/docs/mcp)).
- **Free tool:** [denied-party screening](https://border.bot/tools/denied-party-screening), no account needed.