FAR EASTERN UNIVERSITY

Institute of Accounts, Business and Finance

LAW 1103: REGULATORY FRAMEWORK AND LEGAL ISSUES IN BUSINESS

ANTI-MONEY LAUNDERING ACT (AMLA)

A. Covered institutions/persons and their obligations

“Covered institutions” refer to:

1. Banks, non-banks, quasi-banks, trust entities, and all other institutions and their
subsidiaries and affiliates supervised or regulated by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas
(BSP);
2. Insurance companies and all other institutions supervised or regulated by the Insurance
Commission; and
3. (i) Securities dealers, brokers, salesmen, investment houses and other similar entities
managing securities or rendering services as investment agent, advisor, or consultant;
(ii) mutual funds, closed-end investment companies, common trust funds, pre-need
companies and other similar entities; (iii) foreign exchange corporations, money
changers, money payment, remittance, and transfer companies and other similar
entities; and (iv) other entities administering or otherwise dealing in currency,
commodities or financial derivatives based thereon, valuable objects, cash substitutes
and other similar monetary instruments or property supervised or regulated by
Securities and Exchange Commission.
4. Jewelry dealers in precious metals, who, as a business, trade in precious metals, for
transactions in excess of one million pesos (P1,000,000.00);
5. Jewelry dealers in precious stones, who, as a business, trade in precious stones, for
transactions in excess of one million pesos (P1,000,000.00);
6. Company service providers which, as a business, provide any of the following services
to third parties: (i) acting as a formation agent of juridical persons; (ii) acting as (or
arranging for another person to act as) a director or corporate secretary of a company, a
partner of a partnership, or a similar position in relation to other juridical persons; (iii)
providing a registered office, business address or accommodation, correspondence or
administrative address for a company, a partnership or any other legal person or
arrangement; and (iv) acting as (or arranging for another person to act as) a nominee
shareholder for another person; and
7. Persons who provide any of the following services:
(i) managing of client money, securities or other assets;
(ii) management of bank, savings or securities accounts;
(iii) organization of contributions for the creation, operation or management
of companies; and
(iv) creation, operation or management of juridical persons or arrangements,
and buying and selling business entities

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 Notwithstanding the foregoing, the term ‘covered persons’ shall exclude lawyers and
accountants acting as independent legal professionals in relation to information
concerning their clients or where disclosure of information would compromise client
confidences or the attorney-client relationship: Provided, that these lawyers and
accountants are authorized to practice in the Philippines and shall continue to be subject
to the provisions of their respective codes of conduct and/or professional responsibility
or any of its amendments.

8. Casinos, including internet and ship-based casinos, with respect to their casino cash
transactions related to their gaming operations;
9. Real estate developers and brokers;
10. Offshore gaming operators, as well as their: service providers, supervised, accredited or
regulated by the Philippine Amusement and Gaming Corporation (PAGCOR) or any
government agency.

Obligations of covered institutions/persons

a. Customer identification

Covered institutions shall establish and record the true identity of its clients based on official
documents. They shall maintain a system of verifying the true identity of their clients and, in
case of corporate clients, require a system of verifying their legal existence and organizational
structure, as well as the authority and identification of all persons purporting to act on their
behalf.

The provisions of existing laws to the contrary notwithstanding, anonymous accounts,

b. Record keeping

All records of all transactions of covered institutions shall be maintained and safely stored for
five (5) years from the dates of transactions. With respect to closed accounts, the records on
customer identification, account files and business correspondence, shall be preserved and
safely stored for at least five (5) years from the dates when they were closed.

c. Reporting of covered and suspicious transactions

Covered institutions shall report to the AMLC all covered transactions within five (5) working
days from occurrence thereof, unless the Supervising Authority concerned prescribes a longer
period not exceeding ten (10) working days.

B. Covered and suspicious transactions

Covered Transaction

Covered transaction is a transaction in cash or other equivalent monetary instrument involving

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banking day; for covered persons under Section 3(a)(8), a single casino cash transaction
involving an amount in excess of five million pesos (P5,000,000.00) or its equivalent in any
other currency.

For covered persons under Section 3(a)(9), a single cash transaction involving an amount in
excess of seven million five hundred thousand pesos (P7,500,000.00) or its equivalent in any
other currency.

Suspicious Transaction

Suspicious transactions are transactions with covered persons, regardless of the amounts
involved, where any of the following circumstances exist:
a. There is no underlying legal or trade obligation, purpose or economic justification;
b. The client is not properly identified;
c. The amount involved is not commensurate with the business or financial capacity of the
client;
d. Taking into account all known circumstances, it may be perceived that the client’s
transaction is structured in order to avoid being the subject of reporting requirements
under the Act;
e. Any circumstance relating to the transaction which is observed to deviate from the
profile of the client and/or the client’s past transactions with the covered person;
f. The transaction is in any way related to an unlawful activity or offense under the Act
that is about to be, is being or has been committed; or
g. Any transaction that is similar or analogous to any of the foregoing.

C. Money Laundering

Money laundering is a crime whereby the proceeds of an unlawful activity are transacted,
thereby making them appear to have originated from legitimate sources.

How committed

Money laundering is committed by any person who, knowing that any monetary instrument
or property represents, involves, or relates to the proceeds of any unlawful activity:
a. Transacts said monetary instrument or property;
b. Converts, transfers, disposes of, moves, acquires, possesses or uses said monetary
instrument or property;
c. Conceals or disguises the true nature, source, location, disposition, movement or
ownership of or rights with respect to said monetary instrument or property;
d. Attempts or conspires to commit money laundering offenses referred to in paragraphs
(a), (b) or (c);
e. Aids, abets, assists in or counsels the commission of the money laundering offenses
referred to in paragraphs (a), (b) or (c) above; and
f. Performs or fails to perform any act as a result of which he facilitates the offense of
g. money laundering referred to in paragraphs (a), (b) or (c) above.

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Money laundering is also committed by any covered person who, knowing that a covered or
suspicious transaction is required under this Act to be reported to the Anti-Money Laundering
Council (AMLC), fails to do so.

D. Predicate crimes under the Anti-Money Laundering law

Save for the omission to report covered and suspicious transactions, a money laundering
offense, by definition, assumes the commission of an unlawful activity. For instance,
kidnapping is an unlawful activity. If the kidnapper deposits the ransom money with a bank,
another offense is committed—money laundering. There is money laundering because the
proceeds of the unlawful activity were transacted to make it appear that they originated from
lawful sources. To constitute money laundering, however, the predicate crime must be based
on any of the unlawful activities enumerated by law.

Unlawful activity, as defined by AMLA, refers to any act or omission or series or combination
thereof involving or having direct relation to the following:
1. Kidnapping for ransom under Article 267 of Act No. 3815, otherwise known as the
Revised Penal Code, as amended;
2. Sections 4, 5, 6, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, and 16 of R.A. No. 9165, otherwise
known as the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002;
3. Section 3 paragraphs B, C, E, G, H and I of R.A. No. 3019, as amended, otherwise
known as the Anti-Graft and Corrupt Practices Act;
4. Plunder under R.A. No. 7080, as amended;
5. Robbery and extortion under Articles 294, 295, 296, 299, 300, 301 and 302 of the
Revised Penal Code, as amended;
6. Jueteng and masiao punished as illegal gambling under P.D. No. 1602;
7. Piracy on the high seas under the Revised Penal Code, as amended and P.D. No. 532;
8. Qualified theft under Article 310 of the Revised Penal Code, as amended;
9. Swindling under Article 315 and Other Forms of Swindling under Article 316 of the
Revised Penal Code, as amended;
10. Smuggling under R.A. Nos. 455 and 1937;
11. Violations of R.A. No. 8792, otherwise known as the Electronic Commerce Act of
2000;
12. Hijacking and other violations under R.A. No. 6235; destructive arson and murder, as
defined under the Revised Penal Code, as amended;
13. Terrorism and conspiracy to commit terrorism as defined and penalized under Sections
3 and 4 of R.A. No. 9372;
14. Financing of terrorism under Section 4 and offenses punishable under Sections 5, 6, 7
and 8 of R.A. No. 10168, otherwise known as the Terrorism Financing Prevention and
Suppression Act of 2012;
15. Bribery under Articles 210, 211 and 211-A of the Revised Penal Code, as amended,
and Corruption of Public Officers under Article 212 of the Revised Penal Code, as
amended;
16. Frauds and Illegal Exactions and Transactions under Articles 213, 214, 215 and 216
of the Revised Penal Code, as amended;
17. Malversation of Public Funds and Property under Articles 217 and 222 of the Revised
Penal Code, as amended;

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18. Forgeries and Counterfeiting under Articles 163, 166, 167, 168, 169 and 176 of the
Revised Penal Code, as amended;
19. Violations of Sections 4 to 6 of Republic Act No. 9208, otherwise known as the Anti-
Trafficking in Persons Act of 2003;
20. Violations of Sections 78 to 79 of Chapter IV, of P.D. No. 705, otherwise known as the
Revised Forestry Code of the Philippines, as amended;
21. Violations of Sections 86 to 106 of Chapter VI, of R.A. No. 8550, otherwise known as
the Philippine Fisheries Code of 1998;
22. Violations of Sections 101 to 107, and 110 of R.A. No. 7942, otherwise known as the
Philippine Mining Act of 1995;
23. Violations of Section 27(c), (e), (f), (g) and (i), of R.A. No. 9147, otherwise known
as the Wildlife Resources Conservation and Protection Act;
24. Violation of Section 7(b) of R.A. No. 9072, otherwise known as the National Caves
and Cave Resources Management Protection Act;
25. Violation of R.A. No. 6539, otherwise known as the Anti-Carnapping Act of 2002, as
amended;
26. Violations of Sections 1, 3 and 5 of P.D. No. 1866, as amended, otherwise known as
the decree Codifying the Laws on Illegal/Unlawful Possession, Manufacture, Dealing
In, Acquisition or Disposition of Firearms, Ammunition or Explosives;
27. Violation of P.D. No. 1612, otherwise known as the Anti-Fencing Law;
28. Violation of Section 6 of R.A. No. 8042, otherwise known as the Migrant Workers and
Overseas Filipinos Act of 1995, as amended by R.A. No. 10022;
29. Violation of R.A. No. 8293, otherwise known as the Intellectual Property Code of the
Philippines;
30. Violation of Section 4 of R.A. No. 9995, otherwise known as the Anti-Photo and Video
Voyeurism Act of 2009;
31. Violation of Section 4 of R.A. No. 9775, otherwise known as the Anti-Child
Pornography Act of 2009;
32. Violations of Sections 5, 7, 8, 9, 10(c), (d) and (e), 11, 12 and 14 of R.A. No. 7610,
otherwise known as the Special Protection of Children Against Abuse, Exploitation and
Discrimination;
33. Fraudulent practices and other violations under R.A. No. 8799, otherwise known as
‘The Securities Regulation Code of 2000’;
34. Violation of Section 19 (a)(3) of R.A. No. 10697, otherwise known as the ‘Strategic
Trade Management Act’, in relation to the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction
and its financing pursuant to United Nations Security Council Resolution Numbers
1718 of 2006 and 2231 of 2015”;
35. Violations of Section 254 of Chapter II, Title X of the National Internal Revenue Code
of 1997, as amended, where the deficiency basic tax due in the final assessment is in
excess of twenty-five million pesos (P25,000,000.00) per taxable year, for each tax
type covered and there has been a finding of probable cause by the competent authority:
Provided, further, that there must be a finding of fraud, willful misrepresentation or
malicious intent on the part of the taxpayer: Provided, finally, that in no case shall the
AMLC institute forfeiture proceedings to recover monetary instruments, property or
proceeds representing, involving, or relating to a tax crime, if the same has already been
recovered or collected by the Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) in a separate
proceeding; and

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 36. Felonies and offenses of a similar nature that are punishable under the penal laws of
other countries.

E. Forfeiture provisions

Upon determination by the AMLC that probable cause exists that any monetary instrument or
property is in any way related to an unlawful activity as defined in Section 3(i) or a money
laundering offense under Section 4 hereof, the AMLC shall file with the appropriate court
through the Office of the Solicitor General, a verified ex parte petition for forfeiture, and the
Rules of Court on Civil Forfeiture shall apply.

The forfeiture shall include those other monetary instrument or property having an equivalent
value to that of the monetary instrument or property found to be related in any way to an
unlawful activity or a money laundering offense, when with due diligence, the former cannot
be located, or it has been substantially altered, destroyed, diminished in value or otherwise
rendered worthless by any act or omission, or it has been concealed, removed, converted, or
otherwise transferred, or it is located outside the Philippines or has been placed or brought
outside the jurisdiction of the court, or it has been commingled with other monetary
instrument or property belonging to either the offender himself or a third person or entity,
thereby rendering the same difficult to identify or be segregated for purposes of forfeiture.

In the conduct of its investigation, the AMLC may also apply for the issuance of search and
seizure order with any competent court.

F. Safe Harbor Clause

When reporting covered or suspicious transactions to the AMLC, covered institutions and their
officers and employees shall not be deemed to have violated R.A. No. 1405, as amended, R.A.
No. 6426, as amended, R.A. No. 8791 and other similar laws, x x x.

No administrative, criminal or civil proceedings, shall lie against any person for having made a
covered or suspicious transaction report in the regular performance of his duties in good faith,
whether or not such reporting results in any criminal prosecution under this Act of any other
law.” (Sec. 9(c) of R.A. 9160 as amended by R.A. 9194)