Art. 53 General provisions | Sixth anti-money laundering (AML 6) directive | AML

This is a foundational article for the enforcement section of the Directive, establishing the overarching framework for sanctions and administrative measures applicable to obliged entities that breach the AML/CFT regulations.

It sets out who can be sanctioned, how sanctions are to be imposed, what factors supervisors must weigh when determining their level, and how liability extends beyond the legal person itself to senior management and other responsible individuals.

It also tasks AMLA with developing the technical standards and guidelines that will underpin consistent application across Member States.

Important points:

Ensure your organisation understands that liability for breaches does not stop at the legal entity level — sanctions can extend to senior management and other natural persons responsible for the breach.
Supervisors are required to take into account a range of circumstances when setting sanctions, including gravity, duration, benefit derived, losses to third parties, and prior breaches.
AMLA is required to develop regulatory technical standards and guidelines to harmonise how sanctions are classified and calculated across Member States.

1. Member States shall ensure that obliged entities can be held liable for breaches of Regulations (EU) 2024/1624 and (EU) 2023/1113 in accordance with this Section.
1. Without prejudice to the right of Member States to provide for and impose criminal sanctions, Member States shall lay down rules on pecuniary sanctions and administrative measures and ensure that supervisors may impose such pecuniary sanctions and apply administrative measures with respect to breaches of Regulation (EU) 2024/1624 or Regulation (EU) 2023/1113 and shall ensure that they are enforced. Any sanction imposed or measure applied pursuant to this Section shall be effective, proportionate and dissuasive.
1. By way of derogation from paragraph 2, where the legal system of a Member State does not provide for administrative sanctions, this Article may be applied in such a manner that the pecuniary sanction is initiated by the supervisor and imposed by a judicial authority, while ensuring that those legal remedies are effective and have an equivalent effect to the pecuniary sanctions imposed by supervisors. In any event, the pecuniary sanctions imposed shall be effective, proportionate and dissuasive.
2. The Member States referred to in the first subparagraph shall communicate to the Commission the measures of national law which they adopt pursuant to this paragraph by 10 July 2027 and, without delay, any subsequent amendments thereto.
1. In the event of a breach of Regulations (EU) 2024/1624 and (EU) 2023/1113, Member States shall ensure that where obligations apply to legal persons, pecuniary sanctions can be imposed and administrative measures can be applied not only to the legal person, but also to the senior management and to other natural persons who under national law are responsible for the breach.
2. Member States shall ensure that where supervisors identify breaches which are subject to criminal sanctions, they inform the authorities competent for investigating and prosecuting criminal activities in a timely manner.
1. In accordance with this Directive and with national law, pecuniary sanctions shall be imposed and administrative measures shall be applied in any of the following ways:
  1. directly by the supervisors;
  2. in cooperation between the supervisors and other authorities;
  3. under the responsibility of the supervisors by delegation to other authorities;
  4. by application by the supervisors to the competent judicial authorities.
2. By 10 October 2027, Member States shall notify to the Commission and AMLA the information as regards the arrangements relating to the imposition of pecuniary sanctions or application of administrative measures pursuant to this paragraph, including, where relevant, information whether certain sanctions or measures require the recourse to a specific procedure.
1. Member States shall ensure that, when determining the type and level of pecuniary sanctions or administrative measures, supervisors take into account all relevant circumstances, including where applicable:
  1. the gravity and the duration of the breach;
  2. the number of instances the breach was repeated;
  3. the degree of responsibility of the natural or legal person held responsible;
  4. the financial strength of the natural or legal person held responsible, including in light of its total turnover or annual income;
  5. the benefit derived from the breach by the natural or legal person held responsible, insofar as it can be determined;
  6. the losses to third parties caused by the breach, insofar as they can be determined;
  7. the level of cooperation of the natural or legal person held responsible with the competent authority;
  8. previous breaches by the natural or legal person held responsible.
1. Member States shall ensure that legal persons can be held liable for the breaches of Regulation (EU) 2024/1624 or Regulation (EU) 2023/1113 committed on their behalf or for their benefit by any person, acting individually or as part of a body of that legal person and having a leading position within that legal person, based on any of the following:
  1. a power to represent the legal person;
  2. an authority to take decisions on behalf of the legal person;
  3. an authority to exercise control within the legal person.
1. Member States shall ensure that legal persons can be held liable where the lack of supervision or control by a person as referred to in paragraph 7 of this Article has made possible the breaches of Regulation (EU) 2024/1624 or Regulation (EU) 2023/1113 by a person under their authority on behalf of or for the benefit of the legal person.
1. In the exercise of their powers to impose pecuniary sanctions and apply administrative measures, supervisors shall cooperate closely and, where relevant, coordinate their actions with other authorities as appropriate, in order to ensure that those pecuniary sanctions or administrative measures produce the desired results and coordinate their action when dealing with cross-border cases.
1. By 10 July 2026, AMLA shall develop draft regulatory technical standards and submit them to the Commission for adoption. Those draft regulatory technical standards shall set out:
  1. indicators to classify the level of gravity of breaches;
  2. criteria to be taken into account when setting the level of pecuniary sanctions or applying administrative measures pursuant to this Section;
  3. a methodology for the imposition of periodic penalty payments pursuant to Article 57, including their frequency.
2. Power is delegated to the Commission to supplement this Directive by adopting the regulatory technical standards referred to in the first subparagraph in accordance with Articles 49 to 52 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1620.
1. By 10 July 2026, AMLA shall issue guidelines on the base amounts for the imposing of pecuniary sanctions relative to turnover, broken down per type of breach and category of obliged entities.