Act 2020
Lei n.º 5/20, de 27 de Janeiro — Lei de Prevenção e Combate ao Branqueamento de Capitais, do Financiamento do Terrorismo e da Proliferação de Armas de Destruição em Massa (Law 5/20 on the Prevention and Combating of Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction)
Issued by Unidade de Informação Financeira
Summary
The core AML/CFT/CPF statute: customer due diligence (Arts. 11-14), record keeping (Art. 16), suspicious-transaction reporting to the UIF (Arts. 17-18) and compliance control systems (Art. 22). Published in Diário da República I Série n.º 10, p. 920; it revokes Lei n.º 34/11 and has been amended by Lei n.º 11/24 and Lei n.º 8/26.
Topics: AML / CFT / Sanctions
Who it applies to
All industries
Obligations arising from this law or regulation
| Obligation | Timing | Regulator | Source | Detail |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| AML record retention | Retention period 10 years from the transaction or end of the business relationship | BNA | source | |
Art. 16(1) of Lei n.º 5/20 requires records to be kept for 10 years from the transaction or from the end of the business relationship; Art. 16(1) as amended by Lei n.º 11/24 gives the same period. Art. 23(2) of Lei n.º 5/20 sets 5 years for training records. BNA Aviso n.º 2/24 refers back to Art. 16. |
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| AML/CFT compliance programme and compliance officer | Ongoing | BNA | source | |
Art. 22(1) of Lei n.º 5/20 requires an AML/CFT programme suited to the entity's sector, risks and size, with internal policies, procedures and controls, and compliance control systems including a person responsible at management level (Art. 22(1)(a)). Lei n.º 11/24 Art. 9(6)(a) requires policies approved by the management body. For banks, BNA Aviso n.º 2/24 makes the board appoint the compliance officer (Art. 34(2)(e)) and sets the officer's duties (Art. 35). |
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| Customer due diligence (KYC/CDD) | At onboarding + ongoing | BNA | source | |
Art. 11 of Lei n.º 5/20 requires identification and verification of customers, representatives and beneficial owners when a relationship starts, for occasional transactions above the Annex thresholds, for wire transfers above a set value, on suspicion, or where earlier data is doubtful. Art. 12 deals with timing, Art. 13 with simplified measures and Art. 14 with enhanced measures including for politically exposed persons. BNA Aviso n.º 2/24 sets an occasional-transaction threshold equivalent to USD 15,000 (Art. 11(1)) and, where identity verification is postponed until after the relationship begins, a 15-day limit from its start (Art. 10). |
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| Suspicious transaction reporting to the UIF | Deadline Immediately; no later than 24 hours after concluding a suspicion exists (UIF Instruction 001/DG-UIF/2026) | UIF | source | |
Art. 17(1) of Lei n.º 5/20 requires entities to inform the UIF 'de imediato' on their own initiative when they know or have sufficient reason to suspect a suspicious operation. UIF Instrução n.º 001/DG-UIF/2026 (7 October 2026, Art. 3(2)) caps this at 24 hours from the moment the entity concludes a suspicion exists. BNA Aviso n.º 2/24 Arts. 27-29 set the reporting procedure for banks. |
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| No obligations match these filters. | ||||
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