Q&A of the EU Commission on the AML package

On 20 July 2021, the European Commission proposed the ambitious AML package and thus launched the European legislative process. Almost three years later, the time has come: on 24 April 2024, the European Parliament in Strasbourg adopted the final texts of the AML Regulation, the associated Directive and the AMLA Regulation.

The European Commission has published a Q&A catalogue to collect answers to the most important upcoming changes.

Stricter rules in the area of combating money laundering and terrorist financing

Obligated parties

One of the biggest changes will be the expansion of the group of obliged entities. Currently, the majority of financial institutions are obliged entities, as well as various types of non-financial companies and certain crypto-asset service providers. In the future, obliged entities will also include, among others:

All types and categories of crypto-asset service providers,
Crowdfunding platforms and providers of crowdfunding services (that fall within the scope of the EU Crowdfunding Regulation)
Dealers in high-value goods such as vehicles, jewellery, watches, boats, precious metals and gemstones,
Professional football clubs, but only when carrying out certain transactions

counted.

Beneficial owners and inspection of registers

There are also certain changes with regard to the disclosure of the beneficial owner(s) and access to the (transparency) registers. Legal entities that have their registered office outside the EU must also indicate the beneficial owners in the registers if they have a connection to the EU (e.g. a property). As far as public access to the registers is concerned, the Directive stipulates that persons with a legitimate interest may have access to the information. This category includes journalists, NGOs or competent authorities of third countries.

Cash ceiling

A general cash limit for transactions of EUR 10,000 or more is introduced. Member states are free to introduce or retain a lower limit at national level.
In addition, obliged entities must establish and verify the identity of customers for cash transactions over EUR 3,000.

Partnerships for the exchange of information

Under the new rules, obliged entities may establish information sharing partnerships to share information relating to money laundering and terrorist financing or suspicious activity reports and suspicious transactions. National FIUs and other authorities, such as law enforcement agencies, can participate in the exchange of information.

The only digital access portal for property information

To make it easier for authorities to obtain financial information about property (such as sales value or encumbrances), member states must operate a digital portal where all this information is accessible. How exactly the portal will function and be organised is up to the member states.

When will the changes come into force

To complete the Regulation and the Directive, technical standards must be prepared to concretise many of the provisions. These cannot be drawn up before the AMLA is set up. The AMLA will be established shortly after the formal adoption of the Regulation and will take approximately one year to become operational. The complete set of regulations, including the technical standards, is expected to be available by mid-2027 and will then be mandatory. Not all regulations will come into force at the same time; for example, the rules relating to the football sector and the creation of an access portal for properties will not be applicable until 2029.

You can find the Q&A catalogue of the European Commission here.