Financial Crime World

Estonia Adopts FATF Guidelines to Enhance Financial Action and Fight Money Laundering

Strengthening Estonia’s Financial Action Against Money Laundering

Tallinn - The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) has issued a series of guidelines aimed at strengthening Estonia’s financial action against money laundering. The Estonian government has adopted these guidelines, which aim to enhance the country’s ability to identify, prevent, and prosecute money laundering and terrorist financing.

Recent Guidelines Adopted

In October 2023, Estonia adopted revisions to several FATF Recommendations:

  • Recommendation 4: Revising standards for asset recovery
  • Recommendations 30, 31, 38, and INR.4, INR.30, INR.38, and INR.40: Strengthening the country’s ability to recover assets linked to money laundering and terrorist financing
  • Glossary definitions related to asset recovery: Clarifying standards for asset recovery

In October 2023, Estonia also revised:

  • Recommendation 8 and INR.8: Implementing focused, targeted, and risk-based measures on non-profit organisations to prevent them from being used for illicit purposes

Previous Revisions

In February 2023, Estonia adopted revisions to:

  • Recommendations 24 and 25: Beneficial ownership transparency of legal persons and arrangements
    • Introduced new definitions such as “nominator” and “nominee shareholder or director”
    • Strengthened standards on beneficial ownership transparency

In June 2021, Estonia revised:

  • Interpretive Note 15: Clarifying the applicability of proliferation financing risk assessment and mitigation requirements to virtual asset activities and service providers
    • Preventing misuse of virtual assets for illegal purposes

Terrorist Financing Revisions

Estonia has also been active in revising its guidelines on terrorist financing, with revisions made to:

  • Recommendation 1 and INR.1: Strengthening the country’s ability to identify and mitigate risks related to targeted financial sanctions
    • Made in October 2020

Commitment to Implementing FATF Recommendations

Estonia has been working closely with international partners to ensure that its regulatory framework is effective in preventing money laundering and terrorist financing. As a result, Estonia has significantly improved its anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing regime, making it a more attractive destination for businesses and investors seeking a secure and stable financial environment.