Philippines to apply for FATF re-rating following passage of AMLA amendments

The Philippines will apply for a re-rating from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) following the passage of measures such as strengthening the country's anti-money laundering law, an official said Thursday.

In a virtual briefing, Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC) executive director Mel Georgie Racela said among the factors to be submitted in the application for a re-rating is the revisions to the Anti-Money Laundering Act (AMLA) passed into law in January and the controversial Anti-Terrorism Law.

"With the passage of the AMLA amendments as well as the Anti-Terrorism Act, we are able to apply for a re-rating in regard to our technical compliance. If you recall, the assessment of the FATF is addressed to both technical compliance as well as effectiveness compliance," he told reporters.

"For technical compliance, the question's really whether or not we have the law, rules, or regulations. For the AMLA amendments and the Anti-Terrorism Act, these laws address the technical compliance and so we are applying for re-ratings on several recommendations," he added.

The FATF rates countries based on 40 recommendations with four ratings — largely compliant; compliant; partially compliant; and non-compliant. It is still unclear on which of the 40 recommendations the Philippines will request a re-rating.

As of February 2020, the country was rated largely compliant on 21 recommendations; compliant on eight; partially compliant on 10; and non-compliant on one.

To recall, the FATF set a deadline for the Philippines to implement tougher laws on money laundering by February, else the country could again be included in the grey list which consists of jurisdictions under increased monitoring from which the country was removed in 2013.

Passed in January, the AMLA amendment allows the Court of Appeals (CA) to issue a freeze order from 20 days to six months, and deemed lifted if no case is filed against the person within the period set by the court.

It also prevents any court from stopping the AMLC from conducting civil forfeiture proceedings to preserve or protect the assets in question, adding that only the Supreme Court or CA can do so.

Meanwhile, President Rodrigo Duterte signed the Anti-Terrorism Bill into law in July 2020, despite objections from various groups across several sectors. Its constitutionality is now being challenged before the Supreme Court.

Aside from the technical compliance, Racela said the Philippines will also submit a post-observation period report on the effectiveness of the laws by the first week of April, taking into account 11 immediate outcomes.

"It's more of a technical discussion but at least the amendments of the AMLA gave the AMLC and the country a fighting chance. That is what we are saying," he said.—AOL, GMA News