On 21 February 2022, there was published in the Official Journal of the EU (OJ), Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2022/229 of 7 January 2022 which amends the list of high-risk third countries with strategic anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorist financing (CTF) deficiencies set out in Delegated Regulation (EU) 2016/1675. Delegated Regulation 2016/1675 is provided for under Article 9(2) of the Fourth Money Laundering Directive (4MLD) and identifies in an annex third countries that have strategic deficiencies in their AML/CTF regimes that pose significant threats to the financial system of the EU.

The Delegated Regulation makes the following changes to Delegated Regulation (EU) 2016/1675:

  • Burkina Faso, Cayman Islands, Morocco, Senegal, Haiti, the Philippines, South Sudan, Jordan and Mali are added to the list of third countries that are identified as having strategic AML and CTF deficiencies.
  • Ghana, Botswana, Mauritius, the Bahamas and Iraq are removed from the list of countries identified as having strategic AML and CTF deficiencies.

The Delegated Regulation enters into force on the twentieth day following that of its publication in the OJ (13 March 2022).