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REPORT (COM(2021)0423 – C90342/2021 – 2021/0250(COD))

On the proposal for a directive of the European Parliament and of the Council on the mechanisms to be put in place by the Member States for the prevention of the use of the financial system for the purposes of money laundering or terrorist financing and repealing Directive (EU) 2015/849

A-9-2023-0150

Committee on Economic and Monetary Affairs Committee on Civil Liberties, Justice and Home Affairs · Rapporteur: Luděk Niedermayer, Paul Tang

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Parliament's amended version of the Commission proposal for a directive on national mechanisms to prevent money laundering and terrorist financing, replacing Directive (EU) 2015/849. It strengthens rules on beneficial ownership registers, including verification, sanctions for inaccurate information, and access for persons with a legitimate interest. It requires centralised bank account and crypto-asset wallet registers, land and real estate registers, and registers for high-value goods such as vehicles, aircraft and watercraft. It details the powers and independence of Financial Intelligence Units, including suspending transactions and accounts, and cooperation through FIU.net. It sets out supervision of obliged entities, sanctions for breaches, and a larger role for the Anti-Money Laundering Authority (AMLA).

Committee position. The committees propose to strengthen the Commission proposal by adding stricter rules on beneficial ownership registers, new registers for real estate and high-value goods, enhanced FIU powers and cooperation, and a larger role for AMLA.

Key points

  1. Member States may apply anti-money laundering requirements to additional sectors, but the Commission can assess whether such decisions are justified.
  2. Applicants for regulated professions that are obliged entities must show a good understanding of money laundering and terrorist financing risks.
  3. Estate agents must have training programmes for professionals, tailored to the scale and risk of the business.
  4. Member States must keep national risk assessments up to date, review them at least every three years, and publish a summary without classified information.
  5. Central beneficial ownership registers must hold adequate, accurate and up-to-date information, verified at submission and regularly thereafter, with sanctions for repeated failures.
  6. Registers must screen beneficial ownership information against targeted financial sanctions and share findings with competent authorities.
  7. Access to beneficial ownership information is granted to persons with a legitimate interest, including journalists, civil society organisations and higher education institutions.
  8. Member States must set up centralised automated mechanisms for bank accounts, securities accounts and custodial crypto-asset wallets, accessible to FIUs and AMLA.
  9. Competent authorities must have access to land and real estate information through a single access point, interconnected via the European real estate data single access point (E-RED).
  10. Member States must provide access to information on owners of motor vehicles, aircraft and watercraft above EUR 200 000, and on goods in free zones.
  11. FIUs may suspend or prohibit transactions for up to 15 calendar days and suspend bank, payment or crypto-asset accounts for up to 5 days, extendable to 10 days in cross-border cases.
  12. Supervisors must be independent and risk-based, and AMLA may settle disagreements between supervisors by binding instruction.

Who is affected

  • Obliged entities such as banks, estate agents and crypto-asset service providers must comply with registration, due diligence and reporting duties.
  • Member States must set up registers, designate authorities and transpose the directive within two years of entry into force.
  • Financial Intelligence Units gain powers to suspend transactions and accounts and must cooperate through FIU.net.
  • Persons with a legitimate interest, including journalists and civil society organisations, may access beneficial ownership information.
  • Supervisors and self-regulatory bodies must oversee compliance and report sanctions, with public authorities overseeing self-regulatory bodies.

Figures and deadlines

  • National risk assessments must be reviewed at least every three years.
  • Beneficial ownership information must remain available for at least five years and no more than 10 years after a legal entity is struck off.
  • Access decisions for persons with a legitimate interest are valid for at least 2.5 years.
  • Information on closed accounts must be available for five years after closure, extendable by up to five more years.
  • Transactions may be suspended for a maximum of 15 calendar days.
  • Bank, payment or crypto-asset accounts may be suspended for a maximum of 5 days, or 10 days in cross-border cases.
  • Maximum administrative pecuniary sanctions of at least EUR 10 000 000 or 15% of total global annual turnover, whichever is higher.
  • Access to information on motor vehicles, aircraft and watercraft applies above EUR 200 000, with additional requirements above EUR 2 000 000.

Legal basis: Article 294(2) and Article 114 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.