Money Laundering and Proceeds of Crime Act
Act No. 4/2013
15 Customer identification requirements
(1) Subject to the special identification requirements of subsection (2), every financial
institution and designated non-financial business or profession shall identify every one of their
customers and verify a customer’s identity by means of an identity document, when—
(a) opening an account for or otherwise establishing a business relationship with a
customer; or
(b) the customer, who is neither an account holder nor in an established business
relationship with the financial institution, wishes to carry out a transaction in an
amount equal to or exceeding five thousand United Sates dollars (or such lesser or
greater amount as may be prescribed, either generally or in relation to any class of
financial institution), whether conducted as a single transaction or several transactions
that appear to be linked:
Provided that if the amount of the transaction is unknown at the time it is
commenced, the customer’s identification shall be verified as soon as the amount of
the transaction has reached the prescribed amount;
or
(c) the customer, whether or not he or she is in an established business relationship with
the financial institution, wishes to carry out a domestic or international wire transfer of
monetary amounts in the amount equal to or exceeding one thousand United Sates
dollars (or such lesser or greater amount as may be prescribed, either generally or in
relation to any class of financial institution); or
(d) doubts exist about the veracity or adequacy of previously obtained identity documents;
or
(e) there is a suspicion of money laundering or financing of terrorism involving the
customer or the customer’s account.
(2) Unless there is a suspicion of money laundering or financing of terrorism, in which case
identification and verification of the identity of the customer concerned must take place without
regard to any monetary threshold, the following persons are subject to the obligations of
subsection (1) to identify and verify the identity of any of their customers in the following
circumstances—
(a) every legal, accounting or corporate service professional involved in any transaction
concerning the buying or selling of immovable property or any interest in immovable
property that is not mediated through a financial institution or estate agent;
(b) every estate agent, in relation to the vendor and purchaser involved in any transaction
concerning the buying or selling of immovable property or any interest in immovable
property;
(c) every gaming operator, in relation to any of their customers who opens an account or
engages in any financial transaction the value of which is equal to or exceeds three
thousand United Sates dollars (or such lesser or greater amount as may be prescribed);
(d) every precious stones dealer and every precious metals dealer, in relation to any of
their customers from whom or on behalf of whom they receive a payment in currency
equal to or exceeding fifteen thousand United Sates dollars (or such lesser or greater
amount as may be prescribed).
(3) In addition to identifying and verifying the identity of a customer who is not the
beneficial owner of property that is the subject-matter of a prescribed transaction, financial
institutions and designated non-financial businesses or professions shall, as part of their
obligation under subsection (2) or (3), identify the beneficial owner of such property as if the
beneficial owner were the customer in question:
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