Article 19 Establishment of the FIU

Each Member State shall establish an FIU in order to prevent, detect and effectively combat money launderingmeans the conduct set out in Article 3, paragraphs 1 and 5, of Directive (EU) 2018/1673 including aiding and abetting, inciting and attempting to commit that conduct, whether the activities which generated the property to be laundered were carried out on the territory of a Member State or on that of a third country; knowledge, intent or purpose required as an element of that conduct may be inferred from objective factual circumstances; and terrorist financingmeans the conduct set out in Article 11 of Directive (EU) 2017/541 including aiding and abetting, inciting and attempting to commit that conduct, whether carried out on the territory of a Member State or on that of a third country; knowledge, intent or purpose required as an element of that conduct may be inferred from objective factual circumstances;.

The FIU shall be the single central national unit responsible for receiving and analysing reports submitted by obliged entitiesmeans a natural or legal person listed in Article 3 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1624 that is not exempted in accordance with Article 4, 5, 6 or 7 of that Regulation; in accordance with Article 69 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1624, reports submitted by obliged entitiesmeans a natural or legal person listed in Article 3 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1624 that is not exempted in accordance with Article 4, 5, 6 or 7 of that Regulation; in accordance with Article 74 and Article 80(4), second subparagraph, of that Regulation, and any other information relevant to money launderingmeans the conduct set out in Article 3, paragraphs 1 and 5, of Directive (EU) 2018/1673 including aiding and abetting, inciting and attempting to commit that conduct, whether the activities which generated the property to be laundered were carried out on the territory of a Member State or on that of a third country; knowledge, intent or purpose required as an element of that conduct may be inferred from objective factual circumstances;, its predicate offences or terrorist financingmeans the conduct set out in Article 11 of Directive (EU) 2017/541 including aiding and abetting, inciting and attempting to commit that conduct, whether carried out on the territory of a Member State or on that of a third country; knowledge, intent or purpose required as an element of that conduct may be inferred from objective factual circumstances;, including information transmitted by customs authoritiesmeans the customs authorities as defined in Article 5, point (1), of Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council(34) Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 October 2013 laying down the Union Customs Code (OJ L 269, 10.10.2013, p. 1). and the competent authorities as defined in Article 2(1), point (g), of Regulation (EU) 2018/1672 of the European Parliament and of the Council(35) Regulation (EU) 2018/1672 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2018 on controls on cash entering or leaving the Union and repealing Regulation (EC) No 1889/2005 (OJ L 284, 12.11.2018, p. 6).;Regulation (EU) No 952/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 9 October 2013 laying down the Union Customs Code (OJ L 269, 10.10.2013, p. 1).Regulation (EU) 2018/1672 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2018 on controls on cash entering or leaving the Union and repealing Regulation (EC) No 1889/2005 (OJ L 284, 12.11.2018, p. 6). pursuant to Article 9 of Regulation (EU) 2018/1672, as well as information submitted by supervisory authoritiesmeans a supervisor who is a public body, or the public authority overseeing self-regulatory bodies in their performance of supervisory functions pursuant to Article 37 of Directive (EU) 2024/1640, or AMLA when acting as a supervisor; or by other authorities.

The FIU shall be responsible for disseminating the results of its analyses and any additional information to relevant competent authoritiesmeans:a Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU);a supervisory authority;a public authority that has the function of investigating or prosecuting money laundering, its predicate offences or terrorist financing, or that has the function of tracing, seizing or freezing and confiscating criminal assets;a public authority with designated responsibilities for combating money laundering or terrorist financing; where there are grounds to suspect money launderingmeans the conduct set out in Article 3, paragraphs 1 and 5, of Directive (EU) 2018/1673 including aiding and abetting, inciting and attempting to commit that conduct, whether the activities which generated the property to be laundered were carried out on the territory of a Member State or on that of a third country; knowledge, intent or purpose required as an element of that conduct may be inferred from objective factual circumstances;, its predicate offences or terrorist financingmeans the conduct set out in Article 11 of Directive (EU) 2017/541 including aiding and abetting, inciting and attempting to commit that conduct, whether carried out on the territory of a Member State or on that of a third country; knowledge, intent or purpose required as an element of that conduct may be inferred from objective factual circumstances;. It shall be able to obtain additional information from obliged entitiesmeans a natural or legal person listed in Article 3 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1624 that is not exempted in accordance with Article 4, 5, 6 or 7 of that Regulation;.

1. an operational analysis which focuses on individual cases and specific targets or on appropriate selected information, prioritised on the basis of risk, the type and volume of the disclosures received and the expected use of the information after dissemination;

2. a strategic analysis addressing money launderingmeans the conduct set out in Article 3, paragraphs 1 and 5, of Directive (EU) 2018/1673 including aiding and abetting, inciting and attempting to commit that conduct, whether the activities which generated the property to be laundered were carried out on the territory of a Member State or on that of a third country; knowledge, intent or purpose required as an element of that conduct may be inferred from objective factual circumstances; and terrorist financingmeans the conduct set out in Article 11 of Directive (EU) 2017/541 including aiding and abetting, inciting and attempting to commit that conduct, whether carried out on the territory of a Member State or on that of a third country; knowledge, intent or purpose required as an element of that conduct may be inferred from objective factual circumstances; trends and patterns and evolutions thereof.

Each FIU shall be operationally independent and autonomous, which means that it shall have the authority and capacity to carry out its functions freely, including the ability to take autonomous decisions to analyse, request and, in accordance with paragraph 3, disseminate specific information. It shall be free from any undue political, government or industry influence or interference.

When an FIU is located within the existing structure of another authority, the FIU’s core functions shall be independent and operationally separated from the other functions of the host authority.

Member States shall provide their FIUs with adequate financial, human and technical resources in order to fulfil their tasks. FIUs shall be able to obtain and deploy the resources needed to carry out their functions.

Member States shall ensure that the staff of their FIUs are bound by professional secrecy requirements equivalent to those laid down in Article 67, and that they maintain high professional standards, including high standards of data protection, and are of high integrity and appropriately skilled in relation to the ethical handling of big data sets. Member States shall ensure that FIUs have in place procedures to prevent and manage conflicts of interest.

Member States shall ensure that FIUs have rules in place governing the security and confidentiality of information.

Member States shall ensure that FIUs have in place secure and protected channels for communicating and exchanging information by electronic means with competent authoritiesmeans:a Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU);a supervisory authority;a public authority that has the function of investigating or prosecuting money laundering, its predicate offences or terrorist financing, or that has the function of tracing, seizing or freezing and confiscating criminal assets;a public authority with designated responsibilities for combating money laundering or terrorist financing; and obliged entitiesmeans a natural or legal person listed in Article 3 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1624 that is not exempted in accordance with Article 4, 5, 6 or 7 of that Regulation;.

Member States shall ensure that FIUs are able to make arrangements with other domestic competent authoritiesmeans:a Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU);a supervisory authority;a public authority that has the function of investigating or prosecuting money laundering, its predicate offences or terrorist financing, or that has the function of tracing, seizing or freezing and confiscating criminal assets;a public authority with designated responsibilities for combating money laundering or terrorist financing; pursuant to Article 46 on the exchange of information.

1. the measures to be put in place to preserve the operational autonomy and independence of the FIU, including measures to prevent that conflicts of interest affect its operational autonomy and independence;

2. the nature, features and objectives of operational and of strategic analysis;

3. tools and methods for use and cross-check of financial, administrative and law enforcement information to which FIUs have access; and

4. practices and procedures for the exercise of the suspension or the withholding of consent to a transaction and suspension or monitoring of an account or business relationshipmeans a business, professional or commercial relationship connected with the professional activities of an obliged entity, which is set up between an obliged entity and a customer, including in the absence of a written contract and which is expected to have, at the time when the contact is established, or which subsequently acquires, an element of repetition or duration; pursuant to Articles 24 and 25.