In the Republic of Ireland, accountancy firms are required to implement policies and procedures to ensure compliance with anti-money laundering legislation.
The Criminal Justice (Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing) Act 2010, as amended (the Act) increases the obligations on a range of entities, such as credit and financial institutions, lawyers, accountants, and high-value goods dealers, in relation to money laundering and terrorist financing. In particular, it imposes requirements on those entities relating to assessing the risks of money laundering and terrorist financing involved in carrying out their businesses; putting policies in place to mitigate that risk; and carrying out customer due diligence measures. It also sets out the functions and powers of the Financial Intelligence Unit of the Garda Síochána.
The AML review of your firm, will examine the following areas;
- Anti-Money laundering policies and procedures for the firm
- Firm business risk assessments
- Customer due diligence procedures
- Suspicious Transaction Reporting
- AML education and training
There are three possible outcomes from this review;
| Grade |
Action |
| Compliant |
No follow up action necessary. |
| Generally compliant |
Some follow-up action will be required by the member within a specified period to address areas of weakness identified, with a view to achieving a “Complaint Grade”. |
| Non compliant |
Where a significant number of areas of weakness or more serious problems are idenified, and compliance with obligations is deemed unsatisfactory. A detailed plan to address these will be required to be provided and implemented. A Quality Assurance Officer may also refer a case to the Director of Professional Standards or the Quality Assurance Manager or Practice Regulation Manager where non- compliance with AML requirements is identified for further action in line with Bye Law 7.17.6.
|
| No Grade |
Where it is not possible to assess the adequacy and appropriateness of the AML records of the Registered Member. This may occur where a member does not engage in the review. This is deemed unsatisfactory and requiring remedial action. This may result in referral of the matter to the Director of Professional Standards or Quality Assurance Manager or Practice Regulation Manager in accordance with Bye Law 7.17.6. |
For further guidance on AML legislation and registration click
here.
The Investment Business Regulations applicable to Investment Intermediaries are outlined in Bye Law 15.
CPA Ireland Bye Law Amendments
Updated changes to Bye 15, will become effective from the 1
st January 2024. The main changes are laid out as follows and are important to consider for 2024 reviews;
Bye Law 15-Anti-money laundering(AML) Regulations
Remote reviews
15.17.17- The Bye Law was expanded to facilitate remote AML reviews.
Re-review outcomes
15.17.20-The potential outcomes for a re-review were detailed in the revised Bye Law. These mirror those of an initial review.