What changed between the plenary report and the adopted text

Removed:Article 17 – paragraph 5: 5. Member States shall provide their FIUs with adequate financial, human and technical resources in order to fulfil their tasks. FIUs shall be able to obtain and deploy the resources needed to carry out their functions.

Removed:Article 17 – paragraph 5 a (new): 5a. Member States shall ensure that the staff of their FIUs maintain high professional standards, including high professional standards of confidentiality and data protection, and be of high integrity and appropriately skilled, including in detecting biases in,and in the ethical use of, big data sets. The staff of FIUsa shall not be placed in a situation in which a conflict of interest exists or could be perceived to exist. AMLA shall adopt guidelines to specify the circumstances in which such a conflict of interest exists or could be perceived to exist.

Removed:Article 17 – paragraph 6: 6. Member States shall ensure that FIUs have rules in place governing the security and protection of personal data and confidentiality of information, including when disseminating information under paragraph 3.

Removed:Article 17 – paragraph 7: 7. Each Member State shall ensure that its FIU is able to make arrangements or engage independently with other domestic competent authorities pursuant to Article 45 on the exchange of information.

Removed:Article 17 – paragraph 7 a (new): 7a. AMLA shall coordinate the organisation of periodical peer reviews of FIUs for the purpose of assessing whether the requirements set out in this Article have been fulfilled, including having adequate financial, human and technical resources, in accordance with article 37a of Regulation ... [please insert reference to AMLA Regulation - 2021/0240 (COD)]. Where a peer review indicates substantial shortcomings in the operation of an FIU, AMLA shall issue recommendations to the FIU and the Member State concerned to address the shortcomings identified. The recommendations shall be transmitted to the European Parliament, the Council and the Commission.

Removed:Article 17 a (new): Article 17a / Fundamental Rights Officer / 1. Every FIU shall designate a Fundamental Rights Officer. The Fundamental Rights Officer may be a member of the existing staff of the FIU who received special training in fundamental rights law and practice. / 2. The Fundamental Rights Officer shall perform the following tasks: / (a) advise the FIU where he or she deems it necessary, or on request, on activities of the FIU, which have impact on fundamental rights, without impeding or delaying those activities; / (b) support the FIU’s staff in ensuring compliance with fundamental rights; / (c) provide non-binding opinions on working arrangements relevant to his or her field of competence, with the view to enhance the FIU’s compliance with fundamental rights; / (d) inform the management about possible violations of fundamental rights in the course of the FIU’s activities; / (e) promote the FIU’s respect of fundamental rights in the performance of its tasks and activities. / 3. The FIU shall ensure that the Fundamental Rights Officer does not receive any instructions regarding the exercise of his or her tasks. This should not prevent the Fundamental Rights Officer from seeking guidance from relevant actors on the performance of his or her tasks where he or she deems it necessary. / 4. The Fundamental Rights Officer shall report directly to the management of the FIU.

Removed:Article 18 – paragraph 1 – introductory part: 1. Member States shall ensure that FIUs, regardless of their organisational status, have access to the information that they require to fulfil their tasks properly, including financial, administrative and law enforcement information. Member States shall ensure that their FIUs have at least:

Removed:Article 18 – paragraph 1 – point a – introductory part: (a) immediate and, direct access to the following financial information:

Removed:Article 18 – paragraph 1 – point a – point ii: deleted

Removed:Article 18 – paragraph 1 – point a – point iii: (iii) information from obliged entities, including information on wire transfers;

Removed:Article 18 – paragraph 1 – point b – introductory part: (b) immediate and, with the exception of points (ia) and (xiv), direct access to at least the following administrative information:

Removed:Article 18 – paragraph 1 – point b – point i a (new): (ia) information referred to in Article 8(3a) of Council Directive 2011/16/EU1a; / 1a Council Directive 2011/16/EU of 15 February 2011 on administrative cooperation in the field of taxation and repealing Directive 77/799/EEC (OJ L 064 11.3.2011, p. 1).

Removed:Article 18 – paragraph 1 – point b – point ii: (ii) the information from the single access point as referred to in article 16 relating to national real estate registers, land registers or electronic data retrieval systems and land and cadastral registers;

Removed:Article 18 – paragraph 1 – point b – point ii a (new): (iia) the information referred to in Articles 16b and 16c ;

Removed:Article 18 – paragraph 1 – point b – point xix a (new): (xixa) information on public procurements or contracts

Removed:Article 18 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1: The information referred to in point (c) shall include criminal records, information on investigations, information on the freezing or seizure of assets, including in the context of economic or targeted financial sanctions, or on other investigative or provisional measures and information on convictions and on confiscations.

Removed:Article 18 – paragraph 2: 2. Where the information referred to in paragraph 1, points (a), (b) and (c), is not stored in databases or registers, Member States shall take the necessary measures to ensure that FIUs can obtain that information by other means in a timely manner.

Removed:Article 19 – paragraph 1 – introductory part: 1. Member States shall ensure that FIUs respond in a timely manner, to reasoned requests for information by other competent authorities in their respective Member State or Union authorities competent for investigating or prosecuting criminal activities when such requests for information are motivated by concerns relating to money laundering, its predicate offences or terrorist financing or when this information is necessary for the competent authority to freeze, seize or confiscate assets or to perform its tasks under this Directive. The decision on conducting the dissemination of information shall remain with the FIU.

Removed:Article 19 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 1: Where there are objective grounds for assuming that the provision of such information would have a negative impact on ongoing investigations or analyses, or, in exceptional circumstances, where disclosure of the information would be clearly disproportionate to the legitimate interests of a natural or legal person or irrelevant with regard to the purposes for which it has been requested, the FIU may refuse the request for information but only by means of a written and duly justified response. Such a response shall also be transmitted to AMLA for the purpose of identifying trends and any possible impediments to cooperation.

Removed:Article 19 – paragraph 2: 2. Competent authorities shall provide feedback to the FIU about the use made of, and the usefulness of, the information provided in accordance with this Article and article 17, and about the outcome of the investigations performed on the basis of that information. Such feedback shall be provided as soon as possible and in any case, at least on an annual basis, in such a way as to inform the FIU about the actions taken by the competent authorities on the basis of the information provided by the FIU and allow the FIU to execute and improve its operational analysis function.

Removed:Article 19 a (new): Article 19a / Dissemination of information / 1. Member States shall ensure that their FIUs disseminate the results of their analyses and any additional relevant information to other competent authorities where there are grounds to suspect money laundering, its predicate offences or terrorist financing. / 2. Member States shall ensure that their FIUs, on a case by case basis, inform competent authorities in their respective Member State, or Union authorities competent to investigate or prosecute criminal activities, where there is evidence of money laundering, its predicate offences or terrorist financing, or where that information is necessary for the competent authority to freeze, seize or confiscate assets or to perform its tasks under criminal law, unless the provision of such information would have a negative impact on ongoing investigations or analyses. / 2. The decision to disseminate information as referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 shall remain with the FIU in question. / 4. Dissemination of information as referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 shall be conducted via secure communication channels

Removed:Article 20 – title: Suspension of or prohibition to carry out a transaction and suspension of an account

Removed:Article 20 – paragraph 1 – introductory part: 1. Member States shall ensure that FIUs are empowered to take urgent action, where there is a suspicion that a transaction is related to money laundering or terrorist financing, to suspend or prohibit a transaction that is proceeding in order to analyse the transaction, confirm the suspicion and disseminate the results of the analysis to the competent authorities and, where relevant, AMLA. In cases covered by Article 52(1) of Regulation ... [please insert reference to AML Regulation - 2021/0239 (COD)], such suspension shall be imposed on the obliged entity within 48 hours of receiving the suspicious transaction report. Member States shall ensure that subject to national procedural safeguards, the transaction is suspended for a period of a maximum of 15 calendar days from the day of the imposition of such suspension to the obliged entity. Member States shall ensure that such suspensions may be extended for reasons which are external to the FIU’s analysis, in particular the lack of cooperation from the obliged entity.

Removed:Article 20 – paragraph 1 a (new): 1a. Where an FIU decides to suspend or prohibit a transaction that concerns another Member State, it shall promptly inform the FIU of that Member State.

Removed:Article 20 – paragraph 1 b (new): 1b. Where an FIU decides to suspend or prohibit a transaction in accordance with paragraph 1, that information shall be made available to other FIUs through FIU.net.

Removed:Article 20 – paragraph 1 c (new): 1c. Member States shall ensure that FIUs are able to use state-of-the-art technology to match their data with other FIUs’ data of suspended or prohibited transactions in an anonymous manner.

Removed:Article 20 – paragraph 2 – introductory part: 2. Where there is a suspicion that several transactions involving a bank account, a payment account or custodial crypto-asset wallet are related to money laundering, related predicate offences or terrorist financing, Member States shall ensure that the FIU is empowered to take urgent action to suspend the business relationship or the use of a bank account, payment account or custodial crypto-asset wallet in order to perform the analyses, confirm the suspicion and disseminate the results of the analysis to the competent authorities.

Removed:Article 20 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1: Such suspension shall be imposed on the obliged entity within 48 hours of receiving the suspicious transaction report and immediately notified to the competent judicial authority. Member States shall ensure that the use of that bank or payment account is suspended for a period of a maximum of 5 days from the day of the imposition of the suspension, or for a maximum period 10 days in case the FIU receives indication about an ongoing mutual legal assistance request in cross-border cases. Member States shall ensure that any extension of such suspension shall be authorized by the competent judicial authority and notified to the concerned person in order to allow challenging the suspension before a court in accordance with paragraph 3.

Removed:Article 20 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1 a (new): The FIU shall be empowered to impose such suspension at the request of an FIU from another Member State within 48 hours, and it shall be imposed within 48 hours of the request for the suspension and under the conditions specified in the Union law and national law applicable to the FIU receiving the request. Member States shall ensure that, subject to national procedural safeguards, the bank or payment account or custodial crypto-asset wallet is suspended for a maximum period of five calendar days from the day of the imposition of such suspension to the obliged entity, or for a maximum period of 10 days in the event that the FIU receives indication about an ongoing mutual legal assistance request in cross-border cases.

Removed:Article 20 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1 b (new): Member States shall ensure that any extension of such suspension be authorized by the competent judicial authority and notified to the concerned person in order to allow challenging the suspension before a court in accordance with paragraph 3.

Removed:Article 20 – paragraph 2 a (new): 2a. Where an FIU decides to suspend the use of a bank or payment account or custodial crypto-asset wallet that concerns another Member State, it shall promptly inform the FIU of that Member State.

Removed:Article 20 – paragraph 2 b (new): 2b. Where an FIU decides to suspend a bank or payment account or custodial crypto-asset wallet in accordance with paragraph 1, that information shall be made available to other FIUs through FIU.net.

Removed:Article 20 – paragraph 2 c (new): 2c. Member States shall ensure that FIUs are able to use state-of-the-art technology to match their data with other FIUs’ data of suspended banks, payment accounts or crypto-asset wallets in an anonymous manner.

Removed:Article 20 – paragraph 3: 3. Member States shall provide for the effective possibility for the person whose bank account, payment account or custodial crypto-asset wallet is suspended to challenge the suspension before a court in accordance with procedures provided for in national law.

Removed:Article 20 – paragraph 3 a (new): 3a. FIUs shall be empowered to monitor, during a specified period, the transactions or activities that are being carried out through one or more identified bank accounts or other business relationships with regard to persons who present a significant risk of money laundering or terrorist financing. FIUs shall be empowered to give instructions to obliged entities in order to ensure that obliged entities carry out such specific monitoring and report the results to the competent FIU.

Removed:Article 20 – paragraph 3 b (new): 3b. The FIU shall be empowered to impose the monitoring measures referred to in paragraph 3a at the request of an FIU from another Member State for the periods and under the conditions specified in the Union law and national law applicable to the FIU receiving the request.

Removed:Article 20 – paragraph 3 c (new): 3c. When an FIU imposes the suspensions or a monitoring measure referred to in paragraphs 1, 2 and 3a at the request of an FIU from another Member State, the requesting FIU shall be informed promptly about the measures taken by the FIU that received the request.

Removed:Article 20 – paragraph 4: 4. FIUs shall be empowered to impose the suspensions and monitoring measures referred to in paragraphs 1, 2 and 3a, directly or indirectly, at the request of an FIU from a third country under the conditions specified in the national law of the FIU receiving the request.

Removed:Article 20 – paragraph 4 a (new): 4a. By ... [two years after the date of entry into force of this Directive], AMLA shall develop draft implementing technical standards and submit them to the Commission for adoption. Those draft implementing technical standards shall specify the format to be used for the exchange of the information referred to in paragraphs 1a, 1b, 2a and 2b of this Article and set the criteria for determining whether a suspension concerns another Member State. The Commission is empowered to adopt those implementing technical standards in accordance with Article 42 of Regulation ... [please insert reference to AMLA regulation - 2021/0240 (COD)].

Removed:Article 21 – paragraph 1 – point a a (new): (aa) follow up given by the FIU to suspicious transactions reports it has received;

Removed:Article 21 – paragraph 1 – point c a (new): (ca) feedback received from competent authorities

Removed:Article 21 – paragraph 1 – point e a (new): (ea) requests submitted to and received from competent authorities designated under Article 3 of Directive 2019/1153;

Removed:Article 21 – paragraph 1 – point e b (new): (eb) human resources allocated.

Removed:Article 21 – paragraph 1 – subparagraph 2: FIUs shall disseminate the report to obliged entities. Such report shall be made public at the date of its dissemination, except for the elements of the report which contain classified information. The information contained therein shall not permit the identification of any natural or legal person.

Removed:Article 21 – paragraph 2 – introductory part: 2. Member States shall ensure that FIUs provide obliged entities with feedback on the reports of suspected money laundering or terrorist financing at least twice a year. FIUs shall provide feedback on operational and strategic analysis. Such feedback shall cover at least the quality of the information provided, how the information was used, the timeliness of reporting, the description of the suspicion, the documentation provided at submission stage and potential money laundering or terrorist financing typologies not covered by the obliged entity’s report.

Removed:Article 21 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1: The FIU shall provide feedback at least once per year to each category of obliged entity as referred to in Article 3, points (1), (2) and (3)(f), (g), (h) and (k), of Regulation ... [please insert reference to Anti-Money Laundering Regulation - 2021/0239 (COD)].

Removed:Article 21 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 1 a (new): The FIU shall provide a comparative analysis on the quality of suspicious transaction reports by category of obliged entities referred to in Article 3, point (3) points (a)-(e), (i), (j) and (l), of Regulation ... [please insert reference to Anti-Money Laundering Regulation - 2021/0239 (COD)], taking into consideration the overall number of suspicious transactions reported by those obliged entities.

Removed:Article 21 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 2: Such feedback, including a comparative assessment between obliged entities and groups or categories of obliged entities, shall also be sent to supervisors to allow them to perform risk-based supervision in accordance with Article 31.

Removed:Article 21 – paragraph 2 – subparagraph 2 a (new): FIUs shall provide, at least annually, to all obliged entities within their jurisdiction strategic feedback about financial intelligence priorities and trends in money laundering and terrorist financing.

Removed:Article 22 – paragraph 1: Member States shall ensure that FIUs cooperate with each other and with their counterparts in third countries to the greatest extent possible and in a timely manner, regardless of their organisational status. To that end, they shall provide effective arrangements for cross-border and international cooperation.

Removed:Article 22 – paragraph 1 a (new): Member States shall provide their FIUs with adequate financial, human and technical resources in order to ensure effective and efficient cooperation.

Removed:Article 22 a (new): Article 22a / Cooperation with AMLA / Member States shall ensure that FIUs participate in, and contribute to, the activities of AMLA in accordance with the provisions of Regulation ... [please insert reference to AMLA Regulation - 2021/0240(COD)].

Removed:Article 23 – paragraph 1: 1. A system for the exchange of information between FIUs of the Member States shall be set up (FIU.net) without delay. The system shall ensure a secure communication and exchange of information and shall be capable of producing a written record under conditions that allow ascertaining authenticity. If so decided by AMLA, that system may also be used for communications with FIUs counterparts in third countries and with other authorities and Union bodies. FIU.net shall be managed by AMLA. The system shall serve as a centralised information exchange hub between FIUs and AMLA.

Removed:Article 23 – paragraph 2 – introductory part: 2. Member States shall ensure that FIUs exchange information pursuant to Article 24 and 25 using the FIU.net. In the event of temporary technical failure of the FIU.net, the information shall be transmitted without any delay through equivalent protected channels of communication ensuring a high level of data security and data protection, in accordance with criteria identified by AMLA by means of guidelines.

Removed:Article 23 – paragraph 3: 3. Member States shall ensure that, in order to fulfil their tasks as laid down in this Directive and in applicable Union law, their FIUs participate, use and cooperate to the maximum extent in the application of state-of-the-art technologies, in particular those developed and managed by AMLA in accordance with Article 5(5), point (e), and Article 37 of Regulation ... [please insert reference to AMLA Regulation - 2021/0240 (COD)].

Removed:Article 23 – paragraph 3 a (new): 3a. Member States shall ensure that their FIUs are able to use FIU.net for the purpose of matching their data with data of other FIUs in an anonymous manner. Member States shall ensure that their FIUs are able to use FIU.net for the purposes of matching subject-matter data with Europol databases.

Removed:Article 23 – paragraph 3 b (new): 3b. Following a peer review in accordance with Article 17(7a), AMLA may suspend access to FIU.net for a specific FIU where the report of the peer review concludes that requirements relating to the independence, integrity, professionalism, confidentiality or security of that FIU, as set out in Article 17, have not been fulfilled. The decision to impose such suspension shall be taken by the General Board of AMLA in accordance with the the provisions referred to in Article 27(5a) of Regulation [please insert reference to AMLA Regulation - 2021/0240 (COD)] with the affected FIU not having the right to vote. AMLA shall issue an assessment with the decision which explains and indicates the follow-up measures to be complied with in order for the suspension to be lifted. AMLA shall evaluate the actions taken by the FIU concerned no later than three months after issuing the decision.

Removed:Article 23 a (new): Article 23a / Transmission of information by obliged entities to FIUs via FIU.net / 1. AMLA shall ensure that obliged entities are able to use FIU.net to submit suspicious transaction and activity reports to FIUs concerned, in accordance with this Article, through protected channels of communication. / 2. By ... [five years after entry into force of this Directive], AMLA shall ensure that obliged entities are able to use FIU.net to transmit information referred to in Article 50 (1) of Regulation ... [please insert reference to AMLR - 2021/0239 (COD)] to the FIU of the Member State in whose territory the obliged entity transmitting the information is established and to any other FIU which is concerned by such report pursuant to Article 24(1) of this Directive. By the same date, Member States shall ensure that FIUs may request obliged entities to transmit the information referred to in Article 50(1) of Regulation ... [please insert reference to AMLR - 2021/023940 (COD)] through FIU.Net, until its use becomes mandatory under paragraph 3. / 3. Member States shall ensure that transmission of information as referred to in paragraph 2 becomes mandatory for obliged entities by ... [six years after entry into force of this Directive].

Removed:Article 24 – paragraph 1 – introductory part: 1. Member States shall ensure that FIUs exchange, spontaneously or upon request, any information that may be relevant for the processing or analysis of information by the FIU related to money laundering, its predicate offences, or terrorist financing, and the natural or legal person involved, regardless of the type of predicate offences that may be involved, and even if the type of predicate offences that may be involved is not identified at the time of the exchange.

Removed:Article 24 – paragraph 2: 2. By ... [2 years after the date of entry into force of this Directive], AMLA shall develop draft implementing technical standards and submit them to the Commission for adoption. Those draft implementing technical standards shall specify the format to be used for the exchange of the information referred to in paragraph 1 and shall determine the relevant factors to be taken into consideration when determining whether a report pursuant to Article 50(1), first subparagraph, point (a), of Regulation ... [please insert reference to Anti-Money Laundering Regulation - 2021/0239 (COD)] concerns another Member State, the procedures to be put in place when forwarding and receiving that report, and the necessary follow-up.