Article 77 Record retention

1. a copy of the documents and information obtained in the performance of customer due diligence pursuant to Chapter III, including information obtained through electronic identification means;

2. a record of the assessment undertaken pursuant to Article 69(2), including the information and circumstances considered and the results of such assessment, whether or not such assessment results in a suspicious transaction report being made to the FIU, and a copy of the suspicion transaction report, if any;

3. the supporting evidence and records of transactions, consisting of the original documents or copies admissible in judicial proceedings under the applicable national law, which are necessary to identify transactions;

4. when they participate in partnerships for information sharingmeans a mechanism that enables the sharing and processing of information between obliged entities and, where applicable, competent authorities referred to in point 44(a), (b) and (c), for the purposes of preventing and combating money laundering, its predicate offences and terrorist financing, whether at national level or on a cross-border basis, and regardless of the form of that partnership.Prominent public functions as referred to in paragraph 1, point (34), shall not be understood as covering middle-ranking or more junior officials.Where justified by their administrative organisation and by risk, Member States may set lower thresholds for the designation of the following prominent public functions:members of governing bodies of political parties represented at regional or local level, as referred to in paragraph 1, point (34)(a)(iii);heads of regional and local authorities, as referred to in paragraph 1, point (34)(a)(viii).Member States shall notify those lower thresholds to the Commission.In relation to paragraph 1, point (34)(a)(vii) of this Article, where justified by their administrative organisation and by risk, Member States may set lower thresholds for the identification of enterprises controlled by regional or local authorities than those defined in Article 3(3), (4), (6) and (7) of Directive 2013/34/EU.Member States shall notify those lower thresholds to the Commission.Where justified by their social and cultural structures and by risk, Member States may apply a broader scope for the designation of siblings as family members of politically exposed persons, as referred to in paragraph 1, point (35)(d).Member States shall notify that broader scope to the Commission. pursuant to Chapter VI, copies of the documents and information obtained in the framework of those partnerships, and records of all instances of information sharing.

By way of derogation from paragraph 1, obliged entities may decide to replace the retention of copies of the information by a retention of the references to such information, provided that the nature and method of retention of such information ensure that the obliged entities can provide immediately to 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; the information and that the information cannot be modified or altered.

Obliged entities making use of the derogation referred to in the first subparagraph shall define in their internal procedures drawn up pursuant to Article 9, the categories of information for which they will retain a reference instead of a copy or original, as well as the procedures for retrieving the information so that it can be provided to 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; upon request.

The information referred to in paragraphs 1 and 2 shall be retained for a period of 5 years commencing on the date of the termination of the 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; or on the date of the carrying out of the occasional transaction, or on the date of refusal to enter into a 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; or carry out an occasional transaction. Without prejudice to retention periods for data collected for the purposes of other Union legal acts or national law complying with Regulation (EU) 2016/679, obliged entities shall delete personal data upon expiry of the five-year period.

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; may require further retention of the information referred to in the first subparagraph on a case-by-case basis, provided that such retention is necessary for the prevention, detection, investigation or prosecution of 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; 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;. That further retention period shall not exceed 5 years.

Where, on 10 July 2027, legal proceedings concerned with the prevention, detection, investigation or prosecution of suspected 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; 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; are pending in a Member State, and an obliged entity holds information or documents relating to those pending proceedings, the obliged entity may retain that information or those documents for a period of 5 years from 10 July 2027.

Member States may, without prejudice to national criminal law on evidence applicable to ongoing criminal investigations and legal proceedings, allow or require the retention of such information or documents for a further period of 5 years where the necessity and proportionality of such further retention have been established for the prevention, detection, investigation or prosecution of suspected 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; 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;.