COJ Organizes Anti-Money Laundering Unit to Meet FATF Standards

The Companies Office of Jamaica (COJ) has established an AML and CFT unit to comply with FATF requirements and amended the Companies Act to tighten the laws governing beneficial ownership.

In 2017, the Companies Act was amended to add the requirement to provide beneficial ownership data for each firm. Jamaica may be removed from the gray list of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) and the EU’s blacklist as a result of the development of the Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing (CTF) and also the revisions to the Companies Act.

The newly established unit, which has probing authority, is responsible for making sure that the data it receives about beneficial owners is correct and up-to-date. The unit would also carry out field visits, examine the user register and any additional pertinent paperwork of organizations as part of its regulatory action, impose monetary fines, and submit entities for legal action and expulsion. 

Data on the beneficial ownership will be exclusively accessible to the designated bodies, departments, and organizations.

The amendments that are anticipated to be submitted to both houses of the legislature this year will increase corporate transparency and accountability while lowering the possibility that legitimate entities, like businesses, will be misused for terrorism financing, money laundering, and arms proliferation.

The amendments that are anticipated to be submitted to both houses of the legislature this year will increase corporate transparency and accountability while lowering the possibility that legitimate entities, like businesses, will be misused for terrorism financing, money laundering, and arms proliferation.

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