Financial Crime World

Bosnia and Herzegovina Adopts New Anti-Money Laundering Act

Overview

The Parliament of Bosnia and Herzegovina has adopted a new Act on Prevention of Money-Laundering and Financing of Terrorism (AML Act), bringing the country’s anti-money laundering regulations in line with international standards.

Key Provisions

Identification of Clients

  • Obligors must identify clients at the beginning of a business relationship and each time when effecting a transaction for the client that equals BAM 30,000 or more.
  • Ad hoc clients who effect transactions involving a transfer of BAM 2,000 or more must also be identified.

Sectors with Heightened Obligations

  • Gaming organizers: identify and monitor clients conducting gaming transactions where the value of the transaction or a series of interconnected transactions equals or exceeds BAM 2,000.
  • Casinos and “gambling venues”: verify the identity of clients upon entry onto the premises.

Ultimate Beneficial Owner (UBO) Identification

  • Obligors have an obligation to identify UBOs of their clients.
  • A person having 25% or more of business shares, stocks, voting rights, or other controlling rights is considered a UBO.

Manner of Identification

  • Video identification of clients is permitted under certain conditions.
  • Qualified electronic signature certificates and qualified electronic corporate seal certificates are also permitted for identification purposes.

Limitation on Cash Transactions

  • Businesses are prohibited from accepting cash payments in excess of BAM 30,000 or more for transactions involving the sale of goods, real estate, boats, vehicles, or aircrafts, or the provision of services.
  • Payments under real estate sale and purchase transactions cannot be made in cash if the value of the transaction equals or exceeds BAM 30,000.

Reporting Obligations

  • AML obligors must report certain transactions to the Financial Intelligence Unit, including:
    • Cash transactions exceeding BAM 30,000
    • Transactions involving parties from high-risk countries
  • Notaries and lawyers are required to report real estate purchases and loan agreements with a value of BAM 30,000 or more within eight days from certification of signatures or notarization of documents.