The main requirement of the document is as follows: for all money transfers to EU countries and beyond, the account number, name and address of the person instructing the bank to make the transfer must be indicated. Moreover, financial institutions are obliged to immediately provide this data upon police requests if it is necessary to combat terrorism or money laundering. Some concessions remain only for money transfers within the EU: the address and name of the person transferring money will need to be entered into the payment order form only at the request of the receiving bank; in most cases, it will be sufficient to indicate the sender's account number.
Currently, the receiving bank usually does not know who sent the money. Moreover, this is not only about large amounts of 'suspicious' money - Brussels has long believed that terrorism can be financed by small amounts as well.
For the UK, which currently holds the EU presidency, the issue of combating terrorism in various spheres has become particularly relevant in light of the recent terrorist attacks in London. At a special EU summit held after the tragedy in the London Underground, a decision was made to develop measures for additional control over money transfers. And the British government is exerting significant pressure on countries that do not attempt to prevent the movement of suspicious money along the EU's banking routes. It is expected that the draft document proposed by McCreevy will be submitted to the EU Council of Finance Ministers for consideration by the end of this year. If parliament approves it, this instruction will become mandatory in all countries of the Union.
At the same time, at the level of the relevant ministries, a decision was made to accelerate the entry into force of a new, stricter version of the EU directive against money laundering. The European Parliament adopted amendments to it concerning suspicions of terrorist financing back in May, and in June they were approved by the EU Council of Ministers. Now this directive applies not only to banks or the financial services sector, but also to lawyers, notaries, real estate agents, and casino owners. They must, in all transactions and financial transfers exceeding €15,000, establish and record the personal details of their clients. If there are suspicions that a client is deliberately obscuring financial flows or intends to finance a terrorist act, they are obliged to immediately report this to the authorities. EU member states have been given two years to fully implement this directive.
In early June, the European Parliament also adopted a regulation on controlling the movement of cash across EU borders. According to this requirement, when entering EU territory, it is necessary to declare funds exceeding €10,000, not only cash banknotes but also payment instruments that can be easily cashed - checks and the like. If suspicions arise, countries have agreed to exchange information about cases of cash transportation exceeding this amount. Now the ball is in the court of the EU Council of Ministers. After its approval, this provision must enter into force within 18 months.