AML Risk Factors
F208[SCHEDULE 3
Non-exhaustive list of factors suggesting potentially lower risk
Section 34A
(1) Customer risk factors:
(a) public companies listed on a stock exchange and subject to disclosure requirements (either by stock exchange rules or through law or enforceable means), which impose requirements to ensure adequate transparency of beneficial ownership;
(b) public administrations or enterprises;
(c) customers that are resident in geographical areas of lower risk as set out in subparagraph (3).
(2) Product, service, transaction or delivery channel risk factors:
(a) life assurance policies for which the premium is low;
(b) insurance policies for pension schemes if there is no early surrender option and the policy cannot be used as collateral;
(c) a pension, superannuation or similar scheme that provides retirement benefits to employees, where contributions are made by way of deduction from wages, and the scheme rules do not permit the assignment of a member’s interest under the scheme;
(d) financial products or services that provide appropriately defined and limited services to certain types of customers, so as to increase access for financial inclusion purposes;
(e) products where the risks of money laundering and terrorist financing are managed by other factors such as purse limits or transparency of ownership (e.g. certain types of electronic money).
(3) F209[Geographical risk factors – registration, establishment, residence in:]
(a) Member States;
(b) third countries having effective anti-money laundering (AML) or combating financing of terrorism (CFT) systems;
(c) third countries identified by credible sources as having a low level of corruption or other criminal activity;
(d) third countries which, on the basis of credible sources such as mutual evaluations, detailed assessment reports or published follow-up reports, have requirements to combat money laundering and terrorist financing consistent with the revised Financial Action Task Force (FATF) recommendations and effectively implement these requirements.]
Annotations
Amendments:
F208
Inserted (26.11.2018) by Criminal Justice (Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing) (Amendment) Act 2018 (26/2018), s. 38, S.I. No. 486 of 2018.
F209
Substituted (23.04.2021) by Criminal Justice (Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing) (Amendment) Act 2021 (3/2021), s. 27, S.I. No. 188 of 2021.
F210[SCHEDULE 4
Non-exhaustive list of factors suggesting potentially higher risk
Section 39
(1) Customer risk factors:
(a) the business relationship is conducted in unusual circumstances;
(b) customers that are resident in geographical areas of higher risk as set out in subparagraph (3);
(c) non-resident customers;
(d) legal persons or arrangements that are personal asset-holding vehicles;
(e) companies that have nominee shareholders or shares in bearer form;
(f) businesses that are cash intensive;
(g) the ownership structure of the company appears unusual or excessively complex given the nature of the company’s F211[business;]
F212[(h) the customer is a third country national who applies for residence rights or citizenship in the State in exchange for capital transfers, purchase of property or government bonds or investment in corporate entities in the State.]
(2) Product, service, transaction or delivery channel risk factors:
(a) private banking;
(b) products or transactions that might favour anonymity;
F211[(c) non face-to-face business relationships or transactions, without certain safeguards, such as electronic identification means, relevant trust services as defined in the Electronic Identification Regulation or any other secure, remote or electronic, identification process regulated, recognised, approved or accepted by the relevant national authorities;]
(d) payment received from unknown or unassociated third parties;
(e) new products and new business practices, including new delivery mechanism, and the use of new or developing technologies for both new and pre-existing F211[products;]
F212[(f) transactions related to oil, arms, precious metals, tobacco products, cultural artefacts and other items of archaeological, historical, cultural and religious importance, or of rare or scientific value, as well as ivory and protected species.]
(3) Geographical risk factors:
(a) countries identified by credible sources, such as mutual evaluations, detailed assessment reports or published follow-up reports, as not having effective AML/CFT systems;
(b) countries identified by credible sources as having significant levels of corruption or other criminal activity;
(c) countries subject to sanctions, embargos or similar measures issued by organisations such as, for example, the European Union or the United Nations;
(d) countries (or geographical areas) providing funding or support for terrorist activities, or that have designated terrorist organisations operating within their country.]
Annotations
Amendments:
F210
Inserted (26.11.2018) by Criminal Justice (Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing) (Amendment) Act 2018 (26/2018), s. 39, S.I. No. 486 of 2018.
F211
Substituted (23.04.2021) by Criminal Justice (Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing) (Amendment) Act 2021 (3/2021), s. 28(a)(i), (b)(i), b(ii), S.I. No. 188 of 2021.
F212
Inserted (23.04.2021) by Criminal Justice (Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing) (Amendment) Act 2021 (3/2021), s. 28(a)(ii), (b)(iii), S.I. No. 188 of 2021.