Morocco AML Obligations for Accountants: Law 43-05, Law 12-18 and the UTRF

Morocco's anti-money laundering (AML) regime for accountants rests on Law No. 43-05 on combating money laundering, as amended by Law No. 12-18, with the Financial Intelligence Processing Unit (Unité de Traitement du Renseignement Financier, UTRF) as the national authority. This guide sets out what the official gazette text of the 2021 amendments says about accountants, and lists what we could not confirm. It is general information, not legal advice, and our reading of the French-language text is ours.

The legal framework

Law No. 43-05 was promulgated by Dahir 1-07-79 of 17 April 2007. Law No. 12-18, promulgated by Dahir 1-21-56 of 8 June 2021 and published in the Bulletin Officiel No. 7018 of 2 September 2021, amends several articles of Law 43-05 and of the Penal Code, and adds articles 9.1, 13.3 and 28.1 to Law 43-05. It takes effect on publication, except the first paragraph of article 38, which takes effect once its implementing regulation is adopted. We did not read a consolidated text, only the gazette publication of the amendments.

When accountants are covered

Article 2 of Law 43-05, as replaced by Law 12-18, lists the persons subject to the law. In the gazette text we read, item 11 covers chartered accountants and approved accountants, and the list also includes lawyers, notaries and adouls, real estate agents, casinos and dealers in precious metals. Statutory auditors (commissaires aux comptes) and tax advisers did not appear in the list as we read it. A 2012 press report on an earlier UTRF decision named auditors, external accountants and tax advisers among the professions under UTRF supervision, so the position may differ by profession, and we recommend checking with the UTRF.

What the 2021 amendments touched

According to the gazette publication, Law 12-18 amends articles 7, 9, 11, 13, 17, 18, 19, 21, 22, 28 and 38 of Law 43-05 and articles 218-4-2, 574-1, 574-2, 574-3 and 574-5 of the Penal Code. In practice that spans record keeping, reporting, professional secrecy, the Unit's powers and the sanctions regime. A firm that last reviewed its procedures before September 2021 should check them against these articles, in particular the ten-year retention period and the duty to report immediately.

Vigilance (customer due diligence)

Article 4, as replaced, requires subject persons to identify clients and verify them with reliable documents, to take appropriate measures to determine and verify the beneficial owner, to understand the nature and purpose of the business relationship and check the origin and destination of funds, and to apply enhanced measures to politically exposed persons and higher-risk clients. For the general method, see our guides to KYC and customer due diligence in accountancy practices and ultimate beneficial ownership.

Reporting and professional secrecy

Under article 9, as amended, subject persons must file a suspicion report "immediately" with the Unit. Article 9.1, which Law 12-18 added, adds systematic reporting of certain financial transactions regardless of suspicion. We did not find the thresholds in the text we read. Article 13 says professional secrecy cannot be invoked against the Unit or supervisory authorities. Our guide to suspicious activity reports and tipping off is UK-focused but explains the practical steps of spotting, escalating and reporting.

Record keeping

Article 7, as amended, requires operation records to be kept for ten years from execution, and client identity records for ten years from account closure. That is longer than the five years found in several other regimes, so firms with clients in more than one country should apply the longest period that applies.

Penalties

As we read the amended text, article 574-3 of the Penal Code, as amended by Law 12-18, provides a fine of 50,000 to 500,000 dirhams for natural persons. The prison term was cut off in the text we read, so we cannot state it. Article 28 provides administrative fines of 20,000 to 1,000,000 dirhams, and article 28.1 adds disciplinary sanctions including warnings, orders to remedy deficiencies, temporary suspension of staff, restrictions on activity and withdrawal of licences. Check which sanction attaches to which breach before relying on these figures.

What we could not confirm

• The consolidated current text of Law 43-05, and the imprisonment terms in the Penal Code provisions.
• Whether statutory auditors and tax advisers are covered under the current article 2.
• The thresholds for systematic reporting under article 9.1.
• Which body supervises accountants day to day, and any instructions the UTRF has issued to them. The UTRF's own pages were not available to our research tools.

Suggested next steps

These are our suggestions, not requirements. Check with the UTRF or a Moroccan lawyer whether your practice is covered and by which provision. Set your record retention to ten years for Moroccan clients. Write down how staff escalate a suspicion so that a report can be made immediately. For team training, see our CPD courses.

Frequently asked questions

Are accountants in Morocco covered by AML law?

Chartered accountants and approved accountants appear in article 2 of Law 43-05 as replaced by Law 12-18.

How long must records be kept?

Ten years, under article 7 as amended, from execution of the operation or from account closure for identity records.

When did the current rules take effect?

Law 12-18 was published in the Bulletin Officiel on 2 September 2021 and took effect on publication, except the first paragraph of article 38, which waits for its implementing regulation.

When must a suspicion be reported?

Immediately, according to article 9 as amended.