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HMRC: Publishes Money Laundering Non-Compliant Businesses List

United Kingdom·Briefly Analysis⏱️ 4 min read

Summary

  • HMRC publishes a public list of businesses that have failed to comply with the Money Laundering Regulations 2017.
  • This list details civil breaches and includes the address registered for anti-money laundering supervision.
  • Penalties can encompass non-compliance with both the 2017 and earlier 2007 regulations.
  • The register is regularly updated with new entries, removals, and changes to appeal statuses.
  • Since May 2022, businesses with suspended or cancelled AML registrations are listed on a separate government page.

What the HMRC List Reveals

This public record serves as a stark reminder of the significant reputational and financial risks associated with failing to adhere to the UK's stringent anti-money laundering framework.

HMRC maintains a public register detailing businesses that have failed to meet their obligations under the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017. This comprehensive HMRC money laundering non-compliant businesses list serves as a transparent record of entities found in civil breach of these critical financial regulations. The 2017 regulations, which became effective on June 26, 2017, empower HMRC, in its capacity as a supervisory body, with the duty to disclose the particulars of non-compliant firms.

The information published for each entry typically includes the business's registered address, which is the same address provided to HMRC for anti-money laundering supervision purposes. It is crucial to understand that this publicly accessible data pertains exclusively to civil infractions of the regulations, not to criminal offenses. This distinction highlights the administrative enforcement aspect of the UK AML enforcement list, rather than criminal prosecution.

Regulatory Framework and Penalties

As a key supervisor for anti-money laundering (AML) compliance in the United Kingdom, HM Revenue & Customs is responsible for ensuring adherence to the Money Laundering Regulations 2017. The penalties imposed for non-compliance can be complex, often encompassing breaches of both the 2017 regulations and their predecessors, the 2007 regulations, within a single, larger penalty. Alongside the specific details of individual businesses, HMRC also makes public the aggregate number and total monetary value of penalties issued under the 2007 regulations for defined periods.

A significant change in how non-compliant businesses are listed occurred in May 2022. Since this date, businesses whose anti-money laundering registrations have been suspended or cancelled by HMRC are no longer featured on the primary non-compliance list. Instead, these entities are now published on a separate, dedicated page on the GOV.UK website, providing a clearer distinction between different types of regulatory action. This separation helps to refine the focus of the main HMRC anti-money laundering supervision register.

Dynamic Enforcement and Business Impact

The HMRC money laundering non-compliant businesses list is not static; it undergoes frequent updates to reflect ongoing enforcement actions and administrative adjustments. These changes can include the addition of new penalties, sometimes published anonymously, or the updating of existing entries, such as corrections to business names or modifications to appeal statuses. There are also instances where entries are removed due to administrative errors, ensuring the accuracy of the GB businesses AML non-compliance record.

Throughout various reporting periods, such as April 1 to September 30, 2025, October 1, 2024 to March 31, 2025, January 1 to September 30, 2024, and October 1 to December 31, 2023, the list has seen numerous revisions. These updates have involved removing entries from past lists, adjusting penalty amounts, and noting changes in appeal statuses. This public record serves as a stark reminder of the significant reputational and financial risks associated with failing to adhere to the UK's stringent anti-money laundering framework. Businesses must ensure robust compliance to avoid inclusion on this public register and the associated Money Laundering Regulations 2017 penalties.

Practical Implications

This publication by HMRC serves as a public record of businesses failing to comply with the Money Laundering Regulations 2017, highlighting the significant reputational and financial risks of non-compliance. Lawyers and compliance officers should use this as a prompt to review their clients' or organisations' AML frameworks to ensure robust adherence and avoid public listing and penalties.

Source

Source: Information derived from official UK government publications.

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