It seems the HMRC are taking an active look at accountancy practices in terms of their compliance with the anti-money laundering requirements set down by the Money Laundering Regulations (The Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017)
They are targeting firms to check whether they have the requisite policies and procedures, including a firm-wide risk assessment. These are all mandatory documents under the Regulations, but unfortunately they are often missing or have not been kept up to date.
The HMRC inspectors are particularly interested in whether firms have included the risks of proliferation financing, which is still a relatively new requirement under Regulation 18A, sanction checks and staff training.
They have been initially sending out a written request for the firm’s documents, with a series of questions concerning their AML compliance. This has then been followed up with an arranged formal interview with senior personnel at the firm’s offices. The interview is generally conducted by two case officers, armed with a lot of probing questions.
The outcomes can range from an advice letter to a warning letter; or financial sanctions, such as penalties; or non-financial sanctions, such as suspending or cancelling the activities of the firm.
Solicitor Andrew Swan has been advising accountants on achieving compliance and noted that many firms have not kept up to date with the changes in the regulations. “I often see that risk assessments have not been given the appropriate level of detail and thought they require. Often omitting to address the requirements to consider proliferation financing. Sometimes, it is just that training has fallen behind and needs updating.”
“I assist firms to ensure their AML policies, procedures and firm-wide risk assessments are properly prepared and up to date. I also provide in-house staff training and online.”
If your firm needs such advice and assistance, Andrew can be contacted at andrew@andrewswanlaw.co.uk
The online training can be found at Anti-money Laundering Training Course | Andrew Swan Law