The Sanctioning Powers of the European Anti-Money Laundering Authority

Administrative Measures

Pursuant to Article 21 of the AMLA Regulation, AMLA may impose effective, proportionate, and dissuasive administrative measures on Supervised Entities not only in case of an established breach, but also where there is a risk of breach or where internal policies, procedures, and controls are not deemed commensurate with money-laundering or terrorist-financing risks. In particular, these administrative measures include: (i) orders to comply with and implement corrective actions; (ii) orders to cease and desist from particular conduct; (iii) public statements; (iv) restrictions or limitations on business activities (including divestment); (v) governance changes; or (vi) proposals to withdraw or suspend authorization. By means of these administrative measures, AMLA may, for example, impose operational requirements such as enhanced reporting, reinforcement of internal controls, or temporary bans on managers.

Pecuniary Sanctions

Under Article 22 of the AMLA Regulation, AMLA is empowered to impose pecuniary sanctions on Supervised Entities that breach, whether intentionally or negligently, directly applicable obligations under Regulation (EU) 2023/1113, concerning the transfer of funds, or under the anti-money laundering Regulation (EU) 2024/1624. Such entities may also be sanctioned for failing to comply with binding decisions issued by AMLA.

In cases of serious, repeated, or systematic breaches, pecuniary sanctions of up to €10 million or 10% of the total annual turnover may be imposed under certain conditions, pursuant to Article 22 and Annex I of the AMLA Regulation. (For the purpose of this calculation, turnover is determined based on the last available audited consolidated accounts of the ultimate parent undertaking.) More precisely, the AMLA Regulation sets out a tiered system for determining pecuniary sanctions, based on the seriousness, frequency, and geographic scope of breaches. The pecuniary sanctions vary depending on whether the violations concern customer due diligence, internal controls, or reporting obligations, and depending on whether they occurred in one or multiple EU Member States. A base amount is set depending on these criteria and is then adjusted by applying aggravating or mitigating factors, using specific coefficients (per Annex I). If quantifiable, any benefits gained or losses caused by the breach are also added to the total pecuniary sanction amount.

In addition, in cases not covered by its direct pecuniary sanctioning powers and where necessary for the purpose of carrying out its tasks, AMLA may require national financial supervisors to open proceedings to ensure that pecuniary sanctions are imposed in case of breach of applicable national laws, including those laws transposing the anti-money laundering Directive (EU) 2024/1640. Notably, such sanctions will apply to Supervised Entities and to the members of their respective management bodies.

Pecuniary sanctions may be imposed in addition to, or instead of, the abovementioned administrative measures.

Periodic Penalty Payments

The AMLA Executive Board may, under Article 23 of the AMLA Regulation, impose periodic penalty payments to ensure compliance with the regulation's binding measures. These periodic penalties may be directed at Supervised Entities that fail to end a breach in accordance with administrative measures, or at persons who do not provide complete information required by a decision, who fail to cooperate with investigations, or who neglect to produce or correct relevant documentation.

The periodic penalty payment must be effective and proportionate, and it shall remain in force until the obliged entity or individual complies with the relevant administrative measure.

The periodic penalty payment may not exceed 3% of the average daily turnover in the preceding business year for legal persons, or 2% of the average daily income in the preceding calendar year for natural persons. The calculation of the penalty begins from the date specified in the decision imposing it.

Periodic penalty payments may apply for a period of up to six months from the notification of the decision. If compliance is not achieved within that period, AMLA may extend the measure for an additional period of up to six months. AMLA may also impose periodic penalty payments at a later stage with retroactive effect, dating back to the initial application of the administrative measure.

Publication

By way of principle, AMLA publishes every decision that imposes pecuniary sanctions or periodic penalty payments or that applies administrative measures immediately after the person responsible for the breach is informed of that decision. Such decisions will remain published for a period of five years. By way of derogation, following a case-by-case assessment, AMLA may delay the publication of the decision, publish the decision on an anonymous basis, or not publish the decision where the publication of the identity or the personal data of the persons responsible is considered by AMLA to be disproportionate, or where publication jeopardizes the stability of financial markets or an ongoing investigation.

Legal Remedies

Pursuant to Article 24 of the AMLA Regulation, before imposing pecuniary sanctions or periodic penalty payments, the AMLA Executive Board must provide the affected individuals or entities with an opportunity to be heard. The board shall base its decision only on findings that have been disclosed to the parties and on which they have had the opportunity to comment.

Companies affected by coercive and sanctioning measures have access to various legal remedies. First, there is the general possibility of seeking judicial protection under EU law, namely in the form of an action for annulment pursuant to Article 263 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union ("TFEU") or urgent relief under Articles 278 or 279 TFEU. Yet those affected also have the option to request a review of the measure (including administrative measures, pecuniary sanctions, and periodic penalty payments) by the AMLA Administrative Board of Review pursuant to Article 74 of the AMLA Regulation. The internal administrative review covers both procedural and substantive compliance of such decisions with the AMLA Regulation.

A request for review must be made in writing, include a reasoned explanation, and be submitted to AMLA within one month of the notification of the decision to the person requesting the review, or if no such notification has been made, within one month from the time the requesting person becomes aware of the decision. A request for review may also include a request to suspend the execution of the decision concerned by the review procedure.

The Administrative Board of Review may, if it considers the circumstances to justify such action and after considering the position of the Executive Board, order the relevant decision's execution to be suspended until the Executive Board adopts a new decision. If the Administrative Board of Review does not decide on the request for suspension within 14 days, the request shall be deemed rejected. In all other cases, the affected party may seek judicial remedies before the Court of Justice of the European Union, which has unlimited jurisdiction to review decisions imposing pecuniary sanctions or periodic penalty payments, including the power to annul, reduce, or increase them.

Upcoming Regulatory Technical Standards

On 9 February 2026, AMLA launched a public consultation on draft Regulatory Technical Standards ("RTS") relating to pecuniary sanctions, administrative measures, and periodic penalty payments. In particular, the consultation specified the indicators for assessing the severity of breaches, the criteria for setting the appropriate quantum of sanctions, and the methodology for imposing periodic penalty payments.

The public consultation closed on 9 March 2026, and the draft RTS are expected to be submitted to the European Commission by 10 July 2026.