The Act on Preventing Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing is being reformed

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Regulations to prevent money laundering and terrorist financing include national laws as well as European and international regulations.  In Finland, the framework is mainly based on the Anti‑Money Laundering Act (444/2017), which is complemented by a number of separate laws. A major reform of Finland’s anti‑money laundering legislation is currently underway, with the aim of replacing the existing Anti‑Money Laundering Act and updating national laws to comply with the latest EU anti-money laundering package.

The new EU framework requires changes to national rules on the prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing, including the Sixth Anti-Money Laundering Directive, the Anti-Money Laundering Regulation, the regulation establishing the new European Anti-Money Laundering Authority (AMLA), and the amendments to the Financial Information Directive.  The new EU legislation aims to strengthen the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing across the Union and to harmonise Member States legislation. While some elements of the framework have already become applicable, most of the new obligations will apply only after the end of the transition period.

A draft government proposal concerning a comprehensive reform of the national Anti‑Money Laundering Act was subject to public consultation during the summer, and further legislative drafting is currently ongoing. The proposal is expected to be presented in week 12 of 2026, with the Act intended to take effect on 10 July 2027. The proposed Money Laundering Act would regulate national risk assessment, statistics, beneficiary registers, the powers and cooperation of supervisors, and administrative sanctions. The government proposal states that the EU Anti‑Money Laundering Regulation and the new national Anti‑Money Laundering Act should be read together to form a comprehensive picture of the regulatory framework. While the legislation is being reformed, its underlying structure will remain unchanged. Obliged entities will continue to be responsible for identifying customers and beneficial owners, as well as for identifying and assessing risks related to their business activities and client base.

Key amendments in the comprehensive reform of the Anti-Money Laundering Act

National risk assessment and statistics on money laundering

The Anti-Money Laundering Act would regulate national risk assessments and statistics. Under current legislation, the Ministry of Finance is responsible for preparing risk assessments concerning money laundering, and the Ministry of the Interior is responsible for those concerning terrorist financing. The proposal suggests that, in order to ensure that the risk assessment is as comprehensive as possible and that various authorities are involved, the preparation of the money laundering risk assessment would be guided by a national working group on the prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing, which would include broad representation from the ministries and authorities involved in prevention activities and those responsible for money laundering. Responsibility for preparing the risk assessment would lie with the Financial Intelligence Unit of the National Bureau of Investigation. The proposal also suggests that the obligation to compile statistics currently held by the Ministry of Finance, the Ministry of the Interior, and the Ministry of Justice be transferred to the national working group on the prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing. This would also support the preparation of a risk assessment that is as comprehensive as possible and involves a wide range of authorities.

Beneficiary register and beneficial owners of certain legal entities

The Money Laundering Act would provide for a register of information on beneficial owners, i.e., a beneficiary register. In addition, the Act would specify what information is to be stored in the register. Access to the register would be granted to competent authorities, self-regulatory bodies, and entities subject to reporting obligations, as well as to parties with a legitimate interest. The register of beneficial owners would be maintained by the PRH and linked to the European central system.

In order to clarify the national application and interpretation of the Money Laundering Regulation, the registration of beneficial owners of associations, foundations, religious communities, and housing companies would be regulated in the Money Laundering Act in a manner largely corresponding to the current regulation. This would maintain the so-called presumption regulation to reduce the administrative burden.

Other

The comprehensive reform proposes several amendments to the Anti-Money Laundering Act. The definition of politically exposed persons (PEPs) would be expanded to include siblings. Clarifications would be made to customer due diligence requirements, the duties and powers of the supervisors, and the banking and payment account monitoring system. For certain entities subject to reporting requirements, the new Finnish Supervisory Agency would act as the new supervisory authority. In addition, the amounts of administrative penalties would be increased.

What does the reform mean in practice?

The comprehensive reform of the Anti-Money Laundering Act will bring new clarifications and obligations, for which reporting entities should prepare well in advance. In particular, the risk-based assessment will become increasingly important, and cooperation and information exchange between authorities will be enhanced.

The reform is still being prepared, and the final legislation will be specified during the parliamentary review on the Bill. However, those subject to reporting obligations should already be monitoring the progress of the legislation and assessing the impacts that the upcoming changes may have on their own operations, processes and systems.

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