Financial Crime World

Mauritius’ CDD Regulations: What You Need to Know

The Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) has released guidelines for Customer Due Diligence (CDD), also known as “Know Your Client” (KYC), under Section 17 of the Financial Intelligence and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2002 and the Financial Intelligence and Anti-Money Laundering Regulations 2018.

Overview of CDD Guidelines

According to the guidelines, Reporting Persons should adopt a risk-based approach and establish well-documented CDD procedures in line with Section 17C of FIAMLA and Regulation 12 of FIAMLR. The guidelines issued by FIU for different supervised sectors, including:

  • Real estate agents
  • Individual legal professionals
  • Dealers in precious stones and metals

may be consulted during the implementation process of the CDD obligations.

Requirements for Reporting Persons

The regulations require Reporting Persons to apply CDD requirements to customers and beneficial owners, including:

  • Identifying the beneficial owner
  • Taking reasonable measures to verify their identity using relevant information or data obtained from a reliable source
  • Keeping records of actions taken to comply with CDD obligations as well as any difficulties encountered during the verification process

Additional Requirements

As part of their CDD process, Reporting Persons are advised to:

  • Consult the Consolidated UN Sanctions List
  • Carry out a screening to determine whether any match occurs
  • Use relevant information or data obtained from a reliable source to verify identity

The UN Sanctions list is available on FIU’s website in PDF, xml, and Excel formats for consultation by Reporting Persons.

Penalties for Non-Compliance

Any person who knowingly provides false or misleading information to a Reporting Person in connection with CDD requirements under FIAMLA or any guidelines issued thereunder shall commit an offence and shall, on conviction, be liable to:

  • A fine not exceeding 500,000 rupees
  • Imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years

It is also an offence for any Reporting Person not to comply with the FIAMLA and FIAMLR provisions concerning CDD and Record Keeping. On conviction, they shall be liable to:

  • A fine not exceeding 10 million rupees
  • Imprisonment for a term not exceeding five years

Conclusion

The information contained in this document has been produced by the Financial Intelligence Unit (Mauritius) for educational purposes only. Recipients are advised to use this resource to enhance their understanding of their obligations and to assist with compliance under the AML/ CFT regulatory framework. However, this resource does not represent legal advice, and Reporting Persons who are unsure about their obligations should seek independent legal advice.

Note: This article is a rewritten version of the original text in markdown format, with proper headings, subheadings, and bullet points for easier reading and comprehension.