Iran Parliament Approves 2 FATF Bills

EghtesdOnline: Lawmakers on Tuesday approved two bills related to the Iran Action Plan with the intergovernmental Financial Action Task Force. The Guardian Council had earlier found faults with the two bills and sent it back to the legislature for reconsideration.

News ID: ۷۴۶۰۵۵

26 September 2018

News about the much-awaited approval was first announced in a tweet by reformist MP Mahmoud Sadeghi. He wrote that only 25 votes were cast against the AML bill. The other bill was about Iran joining the United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime (Palermo) which also was not appreciated by Guardians.

The Guardian Council, made up of six Muslim clerics appointed by Leader Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei and six jurists elected by the Parliament, is charged with ensuring draft laws do not contradict religious laws or the Islamic Republic Constitution.

The latest move paves the way for Iran meeting its full obligations to the Paris-based group that monitors money laundering worldwide and makes its banks eligible for working with global lenders, Financial Tribune reported.

Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani said the two bills will now go to the Expediency Council for a final ruling on its adaptability with the country's major policies.

The government has sent four pieces of legislation to the parliament, which includes amending the  AML/CFT law in accordance with FATF standards and joining the UN Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime (Palermo) and the International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism.

Last month, the Guardians approved an amendment to Iran's Combating Financing of Terrorism Law ratified by Parliament earlier this year.

Lawmakers in June had refused to approve Iran's accession to the Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism, referring to uncertainties surrounding the nuclear deal in the wake of the US exit. Lawmakers wanted strong assurances from Europeans that Iran will continue to benefit by staying in the nuclear deal.

Back then, the FATF said Iran had until October to complete reforms that would bring it into line with global norms or face consequences of remaining in non-cooperative jurisdictions.