Although we tend to focus on the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017 when we think about anti-money laundering compliance, we often need to refer to the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 too. The money laundering offences are set out in Part 7 of POCA, and sections 327 to 329 list the offences of:
concealing, disguising, converting, acquiring, using or possessing criminal property,
transferring criminal property from England and Wales, from Scotland or from Northern Ireland, and
being involved in an arrangement that one knows or suspects facilitates the acquisition, retention, use or control of criminal property.
(Each of sections 327 to 329 states that a person does not commit an offence if they make an ‘authorised disclosure’.)
Sections 330 and 331 are fundamental to firms of accountants, as they set out the specific offences of failure to disclose relating to the regulated sector. A principal or relevant employee in an accountancy practice commits an offence if:
they know, suspect, or have reasonable grounds for knowing or suspecting that a person is involved in money laundering;
the relevant information came to light in the course of the business; and
they fail to make the required disclosure.
The ‘required disclosure’ must be to the practice’s nominated officer or - if the nominated officer is the person required to make the disclosure – to the National Crime Agency (NCA) in the form of a suspicious activity report (SAR). Very similar provisions in respect of terrorist financing are in Part III of the Terrorism Act 2000.
A relevant employee does not commit the offence of failure to disclose if they failed to suspect money laundering and have not been provided with relevant training by their employer. This is worth noting, because it suggests that a breach of paragraph 24 of the Money Laundering Regulations (the requirement to provide appropriate training) is a serious one.
The professional body supervisors will often circulate among their members the NCA’s SARs in Action publication, which is aimed at all stakeholders in the SARs regime. Firms will often use it as part of their staff training.
According to section 339 of POCA, the form and manner of disclosures under sections 330 and 331 may be prescribed by the Secretary of State. In fact, it states that a disclosure not in the prescribed form shall, in itself, amount to an offence. Details of how to submit a SAR (and more) may be found on the NCA website here. It provides a link to the new secure SAR Portal as well as forms for manual completion if preferred.
Through the above link to the NCA website, you can also find issues of the SARs Reporter Booklet, which carries examples of SARs submitted and what the outcome was in each case. Case studies such as these are a useful form of staff training.
Comments