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CSL search skill (exchek-csl)

Screen parties and entities against the U.S. Consolidated Screening List (CSL). The CSL consolidates eleven federal screening lists. Supports exact and fuzzy name search. The fastest path is the free search_csl tool on the hosted ExChek MCP — no API key, no install; the exchek-csl skill wraps it in the full screening-memo workflow.

What you need

  • Nothing, for a standard screen — The hosted search_csl MCP tool screens the CSL using ExChek’s platform-managed Trade.gov key. Connect any MCP client to https://api.exchek.us/mcp and call it — no key, no install. See the MCP guide.
  • Free API key (advanced only) — A personal key from developer.trade.gov is only needed for the advanced direct-API parameters (types, countries, address, offset) the tool doesn’t expose. The skill never stores your key.

How to use

  1. Connect the hosted MCP — Point your agent at https://api.exchek.us/mcp (no auth). The search_csl tool and the exchek-csl skill are available immediately — nothing to install. Load the full skill on demand with get_skill (name exchek-csl).
  2. Ask for a search — Say things like:
    • “Search the CSL for [name or company]”
    • “Screen this entity against the consolidated screening list”
    • “Fuzzy search the CSL for [name]”
    • “Is [company name] on the CSL?”
  3. Review results — The agent calls search_csl and shows you matches (if any), which list(s) they’re on, and match scores for fuzzy search. It can then generate a screening report (see below). A name match is not a determination — hits are surfaced for human adjudication.

Direct Trade.gov API (advanced)

For parameters the search_csl tool doesn’t expose, the skill can call the Trade.gov CSL endpoints directly with your personal API key:

  • Search — GET https://data.trade.gov/consolidated_screening_list/v1/search — Run queries with name, fuzzy_name, sources, and other parameters.
  • Sources — GET https://data.trade.gov/consolidated_screening_list/v1/sources — Returns the list of available screening list sources (abbreviations and names) for use with the search sources parameter.

Your personal API key (from developer.trade.gov) is sent with each request (query parameter or header as required by the portal). The hosted search_csl tool needs no key.

Search parameters

The skill supports all parameters the API allows:

  • name — Searches name and alt_names. Use for entity or company name.
  • fuzzy_name — Set to true for fuzzy name matching (works only with name). Returns results without exact spelling; common words like “Corporation”, “Inc” are filtered.
  • sources — Comma-separated list abbreviations, e.g. DPL (Denied Persons), EL (Entity List), MEU, UVL, ISN, DTC, CAP, CMIC, FSE, MBS, PLC, SSI, SDN (Specially Designated Nationals).
  • types — Filter by entry type.
  • countries — ISO alpha-2 country codes, comma-separated.
  • address, city, state, postal_code — Address fields; or use full_address to search all at once.
  • offset, size — Pagination (offset max 1000, size max 50).

Full parameter list and source abbreviations are in the exchek-csl skill’s references (load via get_skill on the hosted MCP) and on the Trade.gov API details page.

Report (screening memo)

After a search, the agent builds a screening memo: search parameters, date, results summary, detail for each hit (name, source list, match score, address/country), and audit trail.

Backup / downloadable data

If the API is unavailable, the full CSL is downloadable at trade.gov/consolidated-screening-list (JSON, CSV, TSV). Updated daily at 5:00 AM EST/EDT.

Compliance disclaimer

CSL search results are for screening support only. They do not constitute legal or compliance advice. Always verify any determination against official Federal Register publications and the original lists maintained by Commerce, State, and Treasury before relying on them for compliance decisions.

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