The risks of money laundering and funding terrorism represent a major concern for the financial system and for the security of its citizens. Thus, on the 11th of July 2019, The Law. no 129 from 2019 refered to prevention and control of money laundering and funding terrorism was promulgated
The admministrative Unity of Financial Informations from Romania is The National Office for Prevention and Control of Money Laundering, which has a leader role in elaborating, coordination and implementation of the national system for control of money laundering and funfing terrorism.
The National Office for Prevention and Control of Money Laundering collects, processes and analyses the financial informtions.
Provided that, from the examination of processed information and datas at the institution, thorough clues referring to money laundering or funding terrorism result, the Office informs The national Service of Information immediately that there are suspicions of funding terrorism or informs the criminal investigation body about clues of commiting other crime than those of funding terrorism or money laundering, in accordance with the legal provisionsof the special law, thus being outlined the function of dissemination to the competent authorities.
The reporting entities that fall under Law no. 129 from 2019 are the following:
- Credit institutions, romanian legal persons and their branches;
- Financial institutions, romanian legal persons and their branches;
- The administrators of private pension funds, on their own behalf and for private pension funds which they administrate, except for professional ocupational retirement homes;
- Providers of gambling;
- Financial auditors, expert accountants and authorised accountants, authorised assessors, tax consultants, persons who provide financial, business or accounting consultance, other persons who oblige toprovide, themselves or through other persons with whom the other person is affiliated, material aid or counseling referring to fiscal and financial aspects, as principal economic or professional activity;
- Notaries, lawyers, bailiffs and other persons who exercise liberal legal professions, when they provide assistance for preparation or concluding of operations for their clients referring to buying or selling immovable properties, shares and equity interests or elements of the goodwill, the administration of financial instruments, securities or other goods of the clients, operations or transactions which imply a sum of money or a transfer of ownership, establishment or administration of bank accounts, savings or financial instruments, the organisation of the subscription process of the contributions which are necessary for the constitution, functioning or administration of a society; the constitution, administration or managament of such societies, collective investment undertakings in securities or other similar structures, as well as if they participate on their own behalf or for their clients in every operation with financial character or checking immovable properties; the establishment, functioning or administration of trust, societies, foundations or other similar structures;
- Providers of services for societies or trusts, other than those from letters e) and f)
- Providers of exchange services between virtual money and trust coins
- Providers of digital wallets;
- Real estate agents and real estate developers , including them being intermediates in renting immovable properties, but only in terms of transactions for which the minimum value of monthly rent represents the equivalent of 10.000 euros or more;
- Other persons who, as professionals, sell goods, only if they perform cash transactions which have a minimum limit of 10.000 euros in equivalent, no matter if the transaction is accomplished through one or more operations;
- Persons who sell works of art or who act like intermediates in the trade of works of art, including when this activity is caried out in art galleries or auction houses, when the value of the transaction or the series of transactions represents the equivalent of 10.000 euros or more;
- Persons who store or sell works of art or act like intermediates in trade with works of art, when this activity is carried out in free areas, when the value of the transaction or of the series of transactions represents the equivalent of 10.000 euros or more;
Furthermore, as a topical issue, on the 18th of March 2021 the ONPCSB Ordin no. 47 from 2021 was published in the Official Monitor from Romania, through which Law no. 129 from 2019 was modiffied. The changes can be found if the following link is accessed: https://www.ionescu-asociatii.ro/legea-nr-129-din-11-iulie-2019-pentru-prevenirea-si-combaterea-spalarii-banilor-si-finantarii-terorismului/.
The obtaining of an account in The Electronic System of Data Transmission is necessary if the reporting entity has to send one of the reports referred to in articles 6 and 7 from Law no. 129 from 2019, respectively:
Article 6- The reporting entities have to send a report for suspicious transactions exclusively to the Office if they know, suspect or have reasonable reasons to suspect that:
a)The goods come from committing crimes or are connected with funding terrorism;
b) The person or their proxy / representative / agent is not who they claim to be;
c) The information that the reporting entity holds may be used to impose the provisions of this law;
d) In any other situation or regarding elements that are likely to raise suspicions regarding the character, economic purpose or motivation of the transaction, such as the existence of anomalies towards the client’s profile, as well as when there are indications that the data held about the client or the real beneficiary is not real or current, and the client refuses to update them or offers explanations that are not plausible.
(2) *** Repealed by O.U.G. no. 111/2020
(3) The reporting entities consider that they suspect the transaction to be carried out in the situation in which the Office so requests and send a report before carrying out any transaction related to the client that is related to the reported suspicion.
(4) The National Tax Administration Agency shall immediately send a report for suspicious transactions to the Office when, in application of Regulation (EU) 2018 / 1.672 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 23 October 2018 on the control of cash entering or leaving the Union and repealing Regulation (EC) no. 1,889 / 2005, from the data held, knows, suspects or has reasonable reasons to suspect that the goods / funds come from the commission of crimes or are related to the financing of terrorism or the person has violated the obligations established by this regulation.
Art. 7 – (1) The reporting entities have the obligation to report to the Office the transactions with amounts in cash, in lei or in foreign currency, whose minimum limit represents the equivalent in lei of 10,000 euros, including the operations that have a connection between them.
(2) In the situation where the transactions provided in par. (1) are carried out through a credit or financial institution, the reporting obligation rests with it, except for the operations from the remittance activity that will be reported according to par. (5).
(3) Credit institutions and financial institutions shall submit reports on external transfers to and from accounts, in lei or in foreign currency, the minimum limit of which shall be the RON equivalent of EUR 10,000, including related operations.
(4) *** Repealed by O.U.G. no. 111/2020
(5) For the remittance activity, the reporting entities shall submit to the Office reports on the transfers of funds whose minimum limit represents the equivalent in lei of 2,000 euros.
(6) The National Agency for Fiscal Administration shall submit to the Office reports on the information contained in the declarations of individuals regarding cash in foreign currencies and / or in the national currency, which is equal to or exceeds the limit established by Regulation (EU) 2018 / 1.672.
(7) The report for the transactions provided in par. (1), (3) and (5) shall be sent to the Office within a maximum of 3 working days from the moment of the transaction.
(8) The report provided in par. (6) shall be transmitted to the Office within the period provided for in Regulation (EU) 2018 / 1.672 on the control of cash entering or leaving the Union and repealing Regulation (EC) no. 1,889 / 2005, according to a methodology approved by joint order of the president of the National Agency for Fiscal Administration and of the president of the National Office for Prevention and Combating Money Laundering.
The steps to obtain an account in the Electronic Data Transmission System (SETD) are the following:
1. Accessing the Electronic Data Transmission System (SETD) at https://raportare.onpcsb.ro;
2. Filling in the data from the registration page;
3. Printing the user account allocation request – page 1 of the generated form, signing and stamping it;
4. Sending the original account allocation request – signed and stamped – to ONPCSB by mail, courier or e-mail;
5. Communication by ONPCSB of the access password by e-mail.