Outcomes of the Plenary meeting of the FATF, Paris, 17-19 October 2012

STATEMENT ON TURKEY

            The Financial Action Task Force (FATF), the international standard-setter for combating money laundering, the financing of terrorism and proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, is deeply concerned by Turkey’s continued failure to take action to fully criminalise terrorist financing and establish an adequate legal framework for identifying and freezing terrorist assets consistent with the FATF Recommendations.

            The third mutual evaluation report assessing Turkey’s compliance with the FATF Recommendations was adopted in February 2007.  It highlighted serious deficiencies in the area of money laundering and terrorist financing.  Since then Turkey has taken significant action in order to remedy some deficiencies and improve its anti-money laundering regime.  However, over five years after the adoption of the evaluation report and despite the close and constant monitoring and a series of graduated measures taken by the FATF, no remedial action has been taken to improve Turkey’s counter terrorist financing regime.

            An appropriate response by the FATF to the continued failure of one of its members to live up to its commitment to address serious deficiencies identified in a mutual evaluation is to consider suspension of membership.  In June the FATF decided that it would initiate discussions on suspending Turkey’s membership if adequate legislation were not adopted by October 2012.  As of this date, Turkey has still not taken necessary action; therefore, the FATF has decided to suspend Turkey’s membership on 22 February 2013 unless the following conditions are met before that date: 

1. Turkey adopts legislation to remedy deficiencies in its terrorist financing offence
    
2. Turkey establishes a legal framework for identifying and freezing terrorist assets consistent with the FATF Recommendations.

            The FATF looks forward to these conditions being met by Turkey so that the coming into force of the suspension can be avoided.  

 Updating the Best Practices Paper on Confiscation (Recommendations 4 and 38) and a Framework for Ongoing Work on Asset Recovery

The FATF has updated the Best Practice Paper on Confiscation (Recommendations 4 and 38) and a Framework for Ongoing Work on Asset Recovery to bring it in line with the revised FATF Recommendations. The paper aims to assist countries in their implementation of Recommendations 4 and 38, to address impediments to effective confiscation, and to set out a framework for ongoing work on asset recovery in the international context. The Best Practice Paper was originally adopted in February 2010 and has proven to be a useful tool for practitioners.

Best Practices on Confiscation (Recommendations 4 and 38) and a Framework for Ongoing Work on Asset Recovery.

Updating the Best Practices Paper on Managing the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorist Financing Policy Implications of Voluntary Tax Compliance Programmes.

This Best Practices Paper was originally published in 2010, and has now been updated to bring it in line with the revised FATF Recommendations.  The purpose of this Best Practices Paper is to set out best practices, based on the four principles on voluntary tax compliance, to assist countries in ensuring that their VTC programmes do not impede the effective implementation of AML/CFT measures. In particular, it clarifies the application of the four basic principles on voluntary tax compliance since tax crimes became a predicate offence to money laundering, with the adoption of the 2012 FATF Recommendations.

Best Practices: Managing the anti-money laundering and counter-terrorirst financing policy implications of voluntary tax compliance programmes .

Revising the Reference Guide and Information Note on the use of the FATF Recommendations to support the fight against Corruption. 

The Reference Guide and Information Note on the use of the FATF Recommendations to support the fight against Corruption, was originally published in October 2010 to raise public awareness of how the FATF Recommendations, when effectively implemented, help to combat corruption. The FATF has updated this guidance to make it consistent with the revised FATF Recommendations which were adopted in February 2012.  The Plenary of FATF received a report on a meeting with the G20 Anti-Corruption Working Group which is President's Summary of Outcomes from the Experts’ meeting on Corruption on the website.

Use of the FATF Recommendations to support the fight against corruption .

Publishing the follow-up report to the mutual evaluation report of Hong Kong, China

The FATF has approved and published the follow-up report for Hong Kong, China.  

Hong Kong, China was originally placed in the regular follow-up process as a result of partially compliant ratings in certain of the Core and Key Recommendations in its mutual evaluation report of 11 July 2008. Hong Kong, China has made substantial progress on the overall set of Recommendations and has therefore been taken off the regular follow-up process. Henceforth Hong Kong, China will report back to the Plenary on any further improvements to its AML/CFT regime on a biennial basis.

Follow-up report to the mutual evaluation report of Hong Kong, China.