--- title: Jay-Z and Beyonce Cleared Of Potential U.S. Sanction Violations description: Several Republicans criticized the famous couple for a trip they took to Cuba to celebrate their fifth wedding anniversary canonical: https://time.com/3150656/jay-z-beyonce-cuba-sanctions/ author: Alex Rogers article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2014-08-20T22:28:59.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-19T07:47:43.168Z article:section: Entertainment og:title: After Cuba anniversary trip, Jay-Z and Beyonce cleared of potential U.S. sanction violations og:description: The Treasury Department rules that the trip was a part of an educational exchange program og:url: https://time.com/3150656/jay-z-beyonce-cuba-sanctions/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8f8de0c1d4ac0a32/6986a05536176056e190d8c1/jay-z-beyonce-cuba.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 3228 og:image:height: 1816 og:image:alt: U.S. singer Beyonce and her husband rapper Jay-Z walk as they leave their hotel in Havana on April 4, 2013. og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: After Cuba anniversary trip, Jay-Z and Beyonce cleared of potential U.S. sanction violations twitter:description: The Treasury Department rules that the trip was a part of an educational exchange program twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt8f8de0c1d4ac0a32/6986a05536176056e190d8c1/jay-z-beyonce-cuba.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Jay-Z and Beyonce Cleared Of Potential U.S. Sanction Violations > Sponsored content. 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Terms and conditions apply. * Savings buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Savings Account. * No ATM fees from Ally Bank at Allpoint and Moneypass ATMs plus we reimburse for fees charged by other ATM owners nationwide up to $10 per statement cycle. * Early direct deposit offers eligible direct deposits up to two days sooner. * Spending buckets are a feature of Ally Bank's Spending Account. by [Alex Rogers](https://time.com/author/alex-rogers/) ## Alex Rogers Aug 20, 2014 10:28 PM UTC  U.S. singer Beyonce and her husband rapper Jay-Z walk as they leave their hotel in Havana on April 4, 2013. U.S. singer Beyonce and her husband rapper Jay-Z walk as they leave their hotel in Havana on April 4, 2013.Enrique De La Osa—Reuters/Corbis by [Alex Rogers](https://time.com/author/alex-rogers/) ## Alex Rogers Aug 20, 2014 10:28 PM UTC The Treasury Department said Wednesday that there was “no indication” that Beyoncé Knowles-Carter and her husband Jay-Z (Sean Carter) violated U.S. sanctions in Cuba in 2013. The announcement Wednesday comes a year and four months after the famous couple took to a trip to the country to celebrate their fifth wedding anniversary. The department’s inspector general concluded that the Office of Foreign Assets Control, which issues licenses to organizations that sponsor educational exchange programs in Cuba, was “reasonable” for having passed on a formal investigation into the Carters’ visit, despite speculation in the media implying suspicious motives. [In April 2013](http://swampland.time.com/2013/04/11/jay-z-flouts-cuba-trip-amid-republican-outrage/), three Cuban-American Republicans—Sen. Marco Rubio and Reps. [Ileana Ros-Lehtinen and Mario Diaz-Balart](http://ros-lehtinen.house.gov/press-release/ros-lehtinen-and-diaz-balart-ask-ofac-about-beyonce-and-jay-z-trip-cuba)—raised concerns that the Administration wasn’t properly enforcing the travel regulations between the U.S. and Cuba. At the time, the Treasury Department countered that the Carters’ trip was legal under a cultural exchange program. Brushing off Republican speculation about his Cuban getaway, Jay-Z released “Open Letter,” featuring the lyrics: “Obama said, ‘Chill, you gonna get me impeached,'” he rapped. “You don’t need this s— anyway, chill with me on the beach.’” “Politicians never did s— for me except lie to me, distort history,” he rapped. “They wanna give me jail time and a fine. 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