Anti-Money Laundering Obligations in Malta

Malta’s anti-money-laundering framework rests on the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (Cap. 373), the Prevention of Money Laundering and Funding of Terrorism Regulations (S.L. 373.01, the PMLFTR) and the Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit’s Implementing Procedures. They apply to persons carrying out "relevant activity" or "relevant financial business", both defined in Regulation 2(1) of the PMLFTR.

The FIAU states that lawyers provide a wide range of services, not all of which constitute relevant activity, and that services falling outside that definition do not trigger AML and CFT obligations. A lawyer becomes a subject person once they provide a service that does fall within it.

Paragraph (c) of the definition in Regulation 2(1) covers notaries and other independent legal professionals when they participate, whether by acting on behalf of and for their client in any financial or real estate transaction, or by assisting in the planning or carrying out of transactions for their clients concerning:

• the buying and selling of real property or business entities
• the managing of client money, securities or other assets, unless the activity is undertaken under a licence issued under the provisions of the Investment Services Act
• the opening or management of bank, savings or securities accounts
• the organisation of contributions necessary for the creation, operation or management of companies
• the creation, operation or management of companies, trusts, foundations or similar structures, or when acting as a trust or company service provider

The FIAU publishes categories that fall outside the obligations:

• a lawyer who only provides services that fall outside the definition of relevant activity is not considered a subject person and is not subject to the PMLFTR
• the obligations do not cover legal professionals employed by a public authority or working in-house, and who do not provide legal services in their personal capacity beyond their employment
• the managing of client money, securities or other assets is outside the definition where the activity is undertaken under a licence issued under the provisions of the Investment Services Act

The FIAU also notes that where a lawyer provides a mix of services, some or all of which constitute relevant activity, they become subject persons irrespective of the volume that such work represents.

The FIAU states that once a lawyer or legal firm becomes a subject person they must register on the FIAU’s Compliance and Supervision Platform for Assessing Risk (CASPAR) and respond to the Risk Evaluation Questionnaire when it becomes due.

Where a subject person undertakes no relevant activity in a later year, the FIAU states that they need not complete the questionnaire for that year but must nevertheless indicate through CASPAR that they have not undertaken any relevant activity throughout the reporting year.

This requirement appears in the regulatory requirements section of your professional dashboard. If one of the FIAU’s published categories applies to your practice, you can record the requirement as not applicable and cite the category you are relying on.

We record the category you cite. We do not check it against the FIAU, and recording it here is not confirmation from the FIAU that it covers you. Your declaration is a statement about your circumstances now, so we ask you to confirm it again each year.

The FIAU note this page reports was written for independent legal professionals. Accountants and auditors are subject persons under the same regulations, but the FIAU draws their boundary in a separate sector-specific Implementing Procedures Part II, which this page does not report. Accountancy practices should read that document rather than this one.

Orchard72 is a technology marketplace that connects users with legal, financial, and tax professionals. We do not provide legal, tax, or regulatory advice.

We report published regulatory requirements as a courtesy to help professionals stay informed. This is not advice, and professionals should always verify their position directly with the FIAU or with the Chamber of Advocates.

• FIAU: Interpretative Note, Relevant Activity for Lawyers (opens in a new tab)
• FIAU: Implementing Procedures (opens in a new tab)