The Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017 (the “Regulations”) came into force on 26 June 2017. The Regulations implement the EU’s fourth Money Laundering Directive and replace, and have a wider reach than, the earlier 2007 regulations. HMRC has recently issued guidance as to the extent to which the new Regulations apply to pension schemes.
The new requirements
- Record keeping: trustees must maintain accurate, up to date, written records of their schemes’ employers, trustees, members and other beneficiaries. Such other beneficiaries may include members’ spouses and dependents. The records must include the following information:
- in respect of an individual, their name, NI number or unique tax payer reference (if neither of these are available their usual residential address will suffice), their date of birth and the nature of their role in the trust;
- in respect of a legal entity, its corporate name, its unique taxpayer reference, its registered office address, its legal form and the law by which it is governed, its registration number and its role in relation to the trust; and
- a description of the class of persons who are entitled to benefit from the trust.