It’s been revealed by Propertymark that HM Revenue & Customs has fined agents over £1.6m for branches of anti-money laundering regulations.
The fines - levied in April but now revealed - has triggered a reminder from Propertymark to all agents to ensure they are applying and preserving correct and up-to-date registration with HMRC.
The penalties for non-compliance can be substantial, with many agents theoretically at risk of facing a prison sentence of up to two years or an unlimited fine. Since January 2020, it has been a criminal offence to trade as a property agent without being registered with HMRC for anti-money laundering supervision. This rule is also relevant for letting agents managing properties with monthly rents equivalent to €10,000 or more.
%20-%20IMAGE%20Client%20Accounting%20%E2%80%93%20what%20are%20your%20options.jpg)
%20(002).png)
.png)
.png)
%20(002).jpg)
Join the conversation
Jump to latest comment and add your reply
AML has almost nothing to do with preventing criminal activity and almost everything to do with revenue raising.
Look at how many criminals have been caught and prosecuted as a result.
It’s just a stealth tax that does nothing but provide a barrier for estate agents. I would be interested to see how much has been recovered from criminal activity in comparison to fines.
Yep, we registered with HMRC for anti-money laundering at the point we were aware of this requirement. But even though we approached them to register we were find just under 4k for retrospective non-compliance for the previous 2 years.
So even when you try to do the right thing you are punished.
As they advised, ignorance is no defence.
Low hanging fruit
Please login to comment