Samoa

Section 31(1) requires a financial institution to appoint a compliance officer, put in place procedures for customer identification, record keeping and reporting, and train officers, employees and agents to recognise suspicious transactions. Breach is an offence (s.33(2)). The Regulations 2009 add internal programme rules (reg. 17) and set the compliance officer's seniority and independent access to records (reg. 19).

Section 18(3) requires records to be kept for a minimum of five years from the relevant date (identity evidence, transaction or correspondence, or account closure or end of the business relationship, whichever is later).

Section 16(1) requires identification and verification of a customer when establishing a business relationship, conducting a transaction, or on suspicion or doubt about earlier identification; s.16(2) requires reasonable measures on the purpose of a transaction and the source and destination of funds; s.17 bars proceeding without satisfactory evidence of identity; s.19(2) prohibits anonymous, numbered or false-name accounts. One-off transactions not exceeding $50,000 are exempt under s.16(4)(b) unless linked or suspicious. The Money Laundering Prevention Regulations 2009 add enhanced due diligence and ongoing monitoring (regs. 12-14).

Section 4(1) prohibits banking business and business as a securities broker or dealer without a licence, and s.4(5) makes unlicensed business an offence. Section 6(1) requires an application for a licence.

Section 23(1) requires a report to the Financial Intelligence Unit as soon as practicable after forming a suspicion. A written report is required, and where the first report is made by telephone the written report follows within 48 hours (s.23(2)(a)). Section 27 prohibits tipping off. Breach of s.23 carries up to 500 penalty units or five years' imprisonment (s.33(1)).

Section 9(1) allows only a licensed company or statutory body to carry on insurance business, and s.9(3) requires brokers and agents to be licensed. Licences expire on 31 December and are renewed if the licensee gives written notice of intention to renew before 30 November and pays the annual fee (s.19). Unlicensed insurance business is punishable by a fine of up to 500 penalty units (s.9(2)).