Reporting to the FIC is a legal obligation. Public Compliance Communication 50A (PCC 50A) highlights three critical reporting failures that can have serious consequences for accountable and reporting institutions: the non-submission of reports, the rejection of reports due to validation failures, and the submission of reports containing inaccurate, incorrect, or false information.

PCC 50A must be read together with the provisions of Directive 3A and goAML Notice 4A.

1. Non-submitted report

When a reporter has failed to file a report, and becomes aware of same, they must mitigate the loss of intelligence data to the FIC in terms of Directive 3A.

The process:

The reporter is obligated to:

1. Notify the FIC in writing.
2. Submit written progress reports on the submission of the non-submitted reports.

Before filing a remediated report on the FIC’s reporting platform:

1. The reporter must obtain consent from the FIC (this helps the FIC manage data flow and avoid potential backlogs)

After completing the Directive 3A process, the reporter must submit a formal written close-out report detailing:

1. Remediation steps taken.
2. Measures to prevent future reporting failures.

File all non-submitted reports along with the reconciliation report.

Non-compliance

Where a reporter does not inform the FIC of a non-submitted report or fails to remediate according to the remediation plan, the reporter may face administrative sanctions in terms of the FIC Act due to non-compliance with Directive 3A.

2. Defective report

Reports submitted must include all mandatory information, and reports containing incorrect/incomplete information may lead to it being rejected or result in a report submitted to the FIC containing incomplete or false data. The reporter must remediate the defective report once notified, following the process set out in goAML Notice 4A (Directive 3A is not applicable). After submitting a report, an automated email notification will be sent as an acknowledgement of receipt. Reporters are urged to check the status of the submitted report via the goAML message board.

3.1. Defective report – Systems rule failure and rejected report

If a submitted report is rejected due to it not meeting the specific validation requirements, such report will be deemed to be ‘not submitted’. The reporter must correct the information, use the correct prescribed format and re-submit the remediated report within the prescribed period. The reporter must confirm to the FIC in writing once the remediation process has been completed.

3.2. Defective reports – Report content failure

A submitted report which is then accepted but however contains inaccurate or false information, captured either in good or bad faith will still be considered a defective report. The reporter must correct the information, use the correct prescribed format and re-submit the remediated report within the prescribed period. It is important to note that the FIC considers the intentional submission of incorrect data when filing a report as an act of fraud.

4. Recommendations to limit reporting errors

1. Reporters must comply with the FIC Act and the Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing Control Regulations (client due diligence processes).
2. Reporters should conduct pre-validation checks, such as ensuring all mandatory and available information is included before reports are submitted

Reporters should adopt a multi-disciplinary approach which will help in identifying and addressing potential reporting issues.

To assist you with the reporting process, we attach the FICA Reporting user guide to this email. Any queries may be submitted online to FIC: https://www.fic.gov.za/compliance-queries/.

We will be there to assist should you have any further reporting questions.