Title: Trinidad and Tobago’s Crackdown on Financial Crimes: Penalties under AML/CFT Laws

Trinidad and Tobago’s financial regulatory landscape has strengthened against money laundering and terrorist financing with the implementation of key legislations: the Proceeds of Crime Act (POCA), the Anti-Terrorism Act (A-TA), and the Financial Intelligence Unit Act. It is crucial for all Financial Institutions (FIs) and Listed Businesses (LBs) reporting to the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) in Trinidad and Tobago to be aware of the following important offenses and their respective penalties under these acts.

Offenses & Penalties under AML/CFT Laws of Trinidad and Tobago

Money Laundering
- Concealing, disguising, transferring, receiving, bringing into or removing from Trinidad and Tobago money or other property knowing or suspecting that it was obtained from a specified offense. (S29, POCA-A)
- Penalties: 25 Million TT$ and 15 years imprisonment on indictment.
Tipping Off
- Disclosing information to any other person knowing that the matter is subject to investigation or proposed investigation. (S.29, POCA-A)
- Penalties: 5 Million TT$ and 5 years imprisonment on summary conviction.
Failure to disclose knowledge/suspicion of Money Laundering
- Failing to report complex, unusual, large transactions to the FIU. (S.57(1), POCA)
  - Summary Conviction: 500 K TT$ and 2 years imprisonment.
  - Indictment: 3 Million TT$ or 7 years imprisonment.
Failure to make a suspicious transaction or suspicious activity report to the FIU
- Failing to report complex, unusual, large transactions to the FIU. (S.57(1), POCA)
  - Summary Conviction: 500 K TT$ and 2 years imprisonment.
  - Indictment: 3 Million TT$ or 7 years imprisonment.
Failure to comply with Financial Obligations Regulations, 2010
- Failing to comply with AML/CFT regulations. (S.57(1), POCA)
  - Summary Conviction: 500 K TT$ and 2 years imprisonment.
  - Indictment: 3 Million TT$ or 7 years imprisonment.
Company’s Offense
- When a company commits an offense under the POCA, any officer, director, or agent of the company is guilty of an offense. (S.57(2), POCA)
  - Summary Conviction: 500 K TT$ and 2 years imprisonment.
  - Indictment: 3 Million TT$ or 7 years imprisonment.
Providing financial or other services for the commission of terrorist acts (A-TA, Part II, S.3,4 – 9)
- Penalties: 20 years imprisonment.
Participating in the commission of a terrorist act (A-TA, Part II, S.22A)
- Penalties: 25 years imprisonment.
Financing of terrorism (A-TA, Part III, A)
- Penalties: 25 years imprisonment.
Disclosing facts or content of a STR/SAR to any person (A-TA, S.22C(5))
- Penalties: 250 K TT$ and 3 years imprisonment.
Failure to disclose information relating to property used for the commission of offenses under the ATA to the FIU (A-TA, Part VII, S.33)
- Penalties: 5 years imprisonment.
FI or LB refusal to provide information requested by the FIU (S.21(1), FIU Act)
- Penalties: 500 K TT$ and a further fine of 25 K TT$ for each day the offense continues on summary conviction.
- Penalties: 1 Million TT$ and a further 50 K TT$ for each day the offense continues to indictment.
CEO, Director, or other officer, or owner/partner of FI or LB who authorized or agreed to withhold the information requested by the FIU (S.21(2), FIU Act)
- Penalties: 250 K TT$ and 3 years in imprisonment.
Disclosure of information received from FIU (S.23(1), FIU Act)
- Penalties: 250 K TT$ & 3 years in imprisonment.
Disclosure of investigation into the STR/SAR (S.24, FIU Act)
- Penalties: 250 K TT$ & 3 years in imprisonment.
Failure by a supervised entity to register with the FIU (FIU Regulations, R.28)
- Penalties: 50 K TT$ & a further fine of 5 K TT$ for each day the offense continues for non-compliance.
Failure by a supervised entity to notify FIU of a change of address of the registered office (FIU Regulations, R.29)
- Penalties: 20 K TT$.