The European Parliament’s committees for economic and monetary affairs and civil liberties, justice, and home affairs backed tighter rules for those carrying or sending large amounts of cash into and out of the European Union.
The new regulation is another element in the fight against money laundering and the financing of terrorism. The agreement will be voted on by the Parliament as a whole during its plenary session in Strasbourg next week.
“Large sums of cash are often used in criminal activities. It offers criminals the big advantage of being easily transferred and very difficult to trace. These new proposals tighten the rules on those taking over €10,000 in or out of the EU. It extends the scope of the regulation to cover not only cash but also other liquid assets such as gold, prepaid cards or cheques, which are frequently used by criminals to get around the current rules,” said S&D MEP Mady Delvaux, European Parliament’s negotiator for the economic and monetary affairs committee.
“We have voted to give national authorities the tools they need in the fight against the financing of terrorism and money laundering. We have ensured that the new regulation will make it easier for customs and Financial Intelligence Units to share information and cooperate effectively,” she added.
In addition, S&D MEP Juan Fernando López Aguilar, European Parliament’s negotiator for the civil liberties and home affairs committee, added that “criminal and terrorist groups are always looking for new ways to fund their activities and avoid the controls of the authorities. The regulation we have backed today will make their lives harder. We have extended rules to cover cash sent by post, freight or courier shipments, giving authorities the power to request the sender or the recipient to make a disclosure declaration for the money.”
