The Law says when, not what
Cyprus law says exactly what enhanced due diligence means in the cases it names, such as a high-risk third country or a politically exposed person. For…
Cyprus law says exactly what enhanced due diligence means in the cases it names, such as a high-risk third country or a politically exposed person. For…
5 added on the sanctions lists on 27 August 2026. The bulk landed in OFAC's counter-terrorism programme (US-TERR, 5 entries). Top country by count…
A compliance officer opening a new file is not asking what risk is, but what they will have to show. The duty sits in L.188(I)/2007, not in a supervisor's…
A compliance officer schedules a periodic review. The Law schedules a measure; the review performs half of it. Section 61(1) of L.188(I)/2007 says the…
The last 28 days on the sanctions lists, 28 July – 24 August 2026: 1220 changes — 375 additions, 132 removals and 713 amendments across the EU, OFAC, UK…
Quiet weeks in AML are the ones that catch files out. This week's only development is procedural — Barbados, Namibia, and Thailand joining the FATF Guest…
The week dissected, 17–21 August 2026: 50 additions, 0 removals and 38 amendments across the EU, OFAC, UK and UN lists. Who the entries concern: 47…
Cyprus onboarding desks rarely argue about whether verification is required. They argue about when, and how long a client can sit on the books unverified…
A Cyprus compliance officer who has wanted someone at EU level to say what ongoing monitoring actually requires now has a text to read and a window to…
A client sends you a certificate of incorporation, a share register naming one corporate shareholder abroad, and a director that is itself a company…
In Cyprus law a politically exposed person is three people: the holder of a prominent public function, an immediate close relative, and a person known to…
47 added, 13 amended on the sanctions lists on 21 August 2026. The bulk landed in OFAC's counter-narcotics programme (US-NARCO, 25 entries). Top country…
Every practice has the file that will not close. Two of the four documents arrive, then the client goes quiet. ICPAC's AML Directive is direct about how…
Most Cyprus lawyers who wound down an administrative-services practice think of it as something they stopped doing. The Bar Association's standing…
Every screening desk has the same Tuesday afternoon: a queue of alerts, almost all of them somebody abroad who shares a surname with a designated person…
The UK's status on the four lists is rarely the problem — the stale date in the file is. Four lists carry the answer: FATF's call-for-action and…
3 added, 25 amended on the sanctions lists on 19 August 2026. The bulk landed in ISIL/Da'esh sanctions (UN-SCISIL, 21 entries). Top country by count: DZ…
The last 21 days on the sanctions lists, 28 July – 17 August 2026: 1132 changes — 325 additions, 132 removals and 675 amendments across the EU, OFAC, UK…
AMLA Final Report on draft ITSs under AMLAR Art. 15(3) — CySEC C796. This week's developments are dominated by the EU AML framework build-out. AMLA has…
Most compliance officers in Cyprus watch the EU list. ICPAC's Sanctions Directive is written on the assumption that you watch three. ICPAC issues the…
Most firms treat an ICPAC inspection as something they will get time to prepare for. Regulation 4.602 is drafted on the opposite assumption. ICPAC adopted…
The firms leaving the market deserve more of your attention than the ones staying. CySEC issued Circular C790 on 7 July 2026, six days after the MiCA…
If your sanctions procedure still cites the 2016 implementation law, it cites a law that has been repealed. CySEC issued Circular C724 on 1 August 2025 to…
The Cyprus Bar Association issued Circular 02/2026 on 7 January 2026, through its Supervision and Compliance Department, addressed to obliged entities. It…
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