Annual Report
As a New Zealand reporting entity, you must submit your anti-money laundering and counter financing of terrorism (AML/CFT) annual report (Annual Report) to your AML/CFT Supervisor, for the period from 1 July 2023 to 30 June 2024. Annual Reports are important tools for the AML/CFT Supervisors as they help them to target their resources to areas of high risk, by helping them to understand: (a) your business and your sector, and (b) the money laundering threats that you, and other businesses in your sector, face.
Here are some practical steps to ensure your Annual Report is timely and accurate.
What
Make sure that the information required for the Annual Report is available to you before you start the process. Each AML/CFT Supervisor has their Annual Report questionnaire. But, in general, you can expect to be asked to provide information about:
Contact details
Organisational structure
Details of your designated business group (if applicable)
Risk assessment and compliance programme
Products and services your business offers
Customers
Volume and value of transactions
Methods you used to carry out customer due diligence
When
You can submit your Annual Report at any time from 1 July to 31 August 2024. Avoid waiting until the end of August to prepare your Annual Report, because:
Information gathering may be time-consuming. Start reconciling the information as soon as possible.
You will need a RealMe account to submit your Annual Report. If you do not have one already, it might take you a few days to register.
Senior managers need to have oversight of the Annual Report process and, they should approve the Annual Report before this is finalised and submitted.
How
You can find more information on your Annual Report obligations here:
Record Keeping for Annual Reports
The key to a successful Annual Report is an effective record keeping process throughout the year.
Record keeping is the cornerstone of AML/CFT. Developing solid record keeping procedures, with clear responsibilities and oversight, will help you to comply with your AML/CFT requirements. There is no prescribed form of record keeping, and spreadsheets and file notes may be fine for many small reporting entities (get in touch if you need a spreadsheet template to manage your AML/CFT Compliance).
What’s Next?
Get in touch if you need any help with your Annual Report or your record keeping.
