Under the laws of the Territory, all NPOs operating within or from within the Territory are subject to the AML Code.

Additionally, under the laws of the Territory, all persons who may have reasonable knowledge or a reasonable suspicion that another person is engaged in money laundering or terrorist financing are required to make a Suspicious Activity Report (“SAR”), which also includes suspicious transactions, with the Agency.

This requirement extends to NPOs

As per the Code, all NPOs are required to put in place systems for the reporting of SARs to the Agency.

Designated Person to be appointed

NPOs are not required to appoint a Money Laundering Reporting Officer. However, as a means of best practice and ensuring that the NPO’s reporting requirement is complied with, all NPOs are required by the Agency to appoint a Designated Person for the purposes of carrying out the reporting function as well as to act as the NPO’s primary contact with the Agency.

The NPO’s Designated Person is responsible for ensuring that SARs are made with the Agency in a timely manner. Thus, the role of the Designated Person is therefore an important one.

To provide guidance for NPOs in determining who would be the most suitable person to appoint as the Designated Person, the Agency has set out the following criteria:

The Designated Person must:

  • be a person with sufficient seniority within the NPO;
  • know and have a clear understanding of the activities and operations of the NPO; and
  • attend, at least on an annual basis, relevant training on AML/CFT matters.

Given the importance of the role and the responsibility held, the Agency is strongly of the view that the Designated Person must be someone who is senior enough within the NPO and who has the in-depth knowledge of the operations of the NPO in order to effectively carry out the reporting function.

Additionally, in order to carry out the role effectively, it is important that the Designated Person has an understanding and knowledge of AML/CFT matters. Hence the reason why the Agency recommends that the Designated Person attends relevant training, at least on an annual basis. The Agency has chosen not to outline which training needs should be attended simply because the nature of AML/CFT is constantly evolving. It would be up to the NPO and the Designated Person to decide what is relevant training.

Appointment

Once your NPO has appointed a Designated Person, you can use the NPO Designated Person appointment form to notify the Agency of their contact details.

The form must be submitted to the Agency within 14 days of appointment.