What the EU is doing and why
The Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism Authority (AMLA) will be a decentralised EU agency that will coordinate national authorities to ensure the correct and consistent application of EU rules.
The aim of the EU Authority will be to transform the anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) supervision in the EU and enhance cooperation among financial intelligence units (FIUs).
AMLA’s key responsibilities will include:
- Directly supervising selected financial sector entities that operate on cross border basis and present at the highest risk of money laundering and terrorism financing, as well as indirectly supervising other entities in the financial and non-financial sectors.
- Supporting and coordinating Financial Intelligence Units (FIUs) by facilitating joint cross-border cases analyses, enabling controlled information exchange, providing capabilities, advanced data analytics and managing the common FIU.net information system.
- Complementing EU AML/CFT rules by developing regulatory and implementing technical standards and issuing guidelines.
AMLA’s seat will be in Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
Frequently asked questions
The AMLA Task Force is based in The European Commission’s Directorate General for Financial Stability, Financial Markets and Capital Markets Union (DG FISMA). It is the lead service supporting the establishment of the new Anti-Money Laundering Authority (AMLA).
The Authority will be established in 2024, seven days after publication of its establishing Regulation in the Official Journal of the European Union, with the aim to start most of its activities in mid-2025, reach full staffing in 2027, and begin direct supervision of certain high-risk financial entities in 2028. Direct supervision can only start once the harmonised rulebook is completed and applies.
It is envisaged that the Authority will reach over 430 staff members over a horizon of 4 years. Of these, over 200 will work on direct supervision of certain obliged entities. They will work in joint supervisory teams that will include staff of the relevant national supervisors of these entities.
AMLA will launch its first open selection procedure by the end of 2024/early 2025. Vacancies will be published on the AMLA website and on the EPSO website (section “Open for application”).
Timeline
- 24 April 2024European Parliament plenary votes on the reports on Anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism legislative package
- 10 January 2024Seat selection procedure
- 18 December 2023Seat selection procedure
- 28 September 2023Call for application
At the request of the co-legislators, which have agreed on the selection criteria, the Commission launched a call for applications to Member States for the selection of the seat of AMLA.
- 20 July 2021Legislative proposal
The European Commission presented an ambitious package of legislative proposals to strengthen the EU’s anti-money laundering and countering the financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) rules. The package harmonises AML/CFT rules across the EU. It also proposes the creation of a new EU authority to fight money laundering.