On 6 March 2025, the European Banking Authority (EBA) published a consultation paper setting out draft Regulatory Technical Standards (RTS) as part of its ongoing implementation of the EU’s Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) package. The draft RTS will be part of the EBA’s response to the European Commission’s (Commission) Call for Advice. The Commission requested the EBA to prepare these draft RTS to support the launch of new EU Authority for Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (AMLA) operations. The EBA will submit the standards to the Commission on 31 October 2025.

The draft RTS address several important aspects of the EU AML/CFT framework, notably:

  • Selection criteria for direct AMLA supervision (Article 12(7) of the Anti-Money Laundering Authority Regulation (AMLAR)): AMLA will initially identify institutions for direct supervision based on their cross-border activities. Subsequently, AMLA will apply a harmonised methodology to assess money laundering and terrorist financing (ML/TF) risks uniformly.
  • ML/TF risk assessment methodology (Article 40(2) of the Sixth Anti-Money Laundering Directive (AMLD6)): Introducing a standardised risk assessment methodology for national supervisors to evaluate inherent risks, effectiveness of controls, and residual risks consistently. This uniform approach is intended to deliver more consistent supervisory outcomes across Member States and reduce compliance burdens for cross-border firms.
  • Customer due diligence (CDD) standards (Article 28(1) of the Anti-Money Laundering Regulation (AMLR)): Establishing a flexible yet clearly defined framework outlining the scope and quality of information institutions must collect during CDD processes. Institutions will retain discretion in selecting appropriate documents and information sources within regulatory parameters, enabling them to balance effective compliance with operational efficiency.
  • Sanctions and administrative measures (Article 53(10) of AMLD6): Setting uniform criteria and indicators for imposing pecuniary sanctions, administrative measures, and periodic penalty payments. This ensures enforcement across the EU is proportionate, effective, and consistent.

The consultation runs until 6 June 2025, after which the EBA will review submissions and finalise the RTS for its response to the Commission’s call for advice.

The EBA will also hold a virtual public hearing on the consultation paper on 10 April 2025 (registration is required).