Proceeds of Crime (Amendment) Act, 2026 (Act 16 of 2026)

Summary

This Act amends the Proceeds of Crime Act (2025 Revision) to restructure the Anti-Money Laundering Steering Group and formalise information-sharing arrangements within the AML/CFT institutional framework. It is primarily an institutional and governance reform rather than a direct compliance measure for private-sector firms.

• Steering Group membership: Expands and reconstitutes the Steering Group to be chaired by the Minister responsible for financial services (or designate), with the chief officer for financial services as deputy chair, and adds the chief officer of the Ministry responsible for Customs and Border Control (or designate) as a member.
• Inter-Agency Coordination Committee: Formally establishes (continues) the Inter-Agency Coordination Committee appointed by the Steering Group, expands its composition to include a representative from any agency or body assigned by Cabinet as a Supervisory Authority, and clarifies references to financial intelligence unit(s).
• Annual performance reports: Introduces a new section 5A requiring every competent authority responsible for investigating or prosecuting money laundering, predicate offences and terrorist financing to prepare and submit an annual performance report to the Steering Group, setting out prescribed statistical, operational and strategic information, subject to legal privilege and confidentiality safeguards.
• Information sharing: Adds new sections 7A and 7B permitting good-faith information sharing between members of the Inter-Agency Coordination Committee and between that Committee and the Steering Group for specified AML/CFT purposes, subject to Grand Court orders and data protection law, and granting immunity from damages to the Steering Group, the Committee and their members absent bad faith, wilful misconduct or negligence.
• Validation clause: Retroactively validates information disclosures made in good faith between Committee members, and between Committee members and Steering Group members, prior to the Act's commencement.

The Act does not impose new direct obligations on licensees or private regulated entities; its obligations fall on government competent authorities, the Steering Group and the Inter-Agency Coordination Committee.

Key obligations

• Every competent authority charged with investigating or prosecuting money laundering, associated predicate offences and terrorist financing must prepare and submit an annual performance report to the Steering Group no later than three months after the end of each year, containing the prescribed statistical, operational and strategic information.
• Annual performance reports must exclude information subject to legal professional privilege or that would prejudice ongoing or future investigations or prosecutions, and must present certain data (e.g. on unproceeded referrals) only in aggregate, anonymised form.
• The Steering Group must, as soon as practicable after receiving an annual performance report, submit it to Cabinet and thereafter publish it in the Gazette and on a government website.

Applies to

Anti-Money Laundering Steering Group, Inter-Agency Coordination Committee, competent authorities responsible for investigating or prosecuting money laundering, predicate offences and terrorist financing, Financial Reporting Authority

Deadlines

• no later than three months after the end of each year: Deadline for each relevant competent authority to prepare and submit its annual performance report to the Steering Group.

Related documents

• This document amends Proceeds of Crime Act (2025 Revision)