Imprisonment and Penalties for Money Laundering Crime in UAE

This article discusses Federal Decree by Law No 20 of 2018 on Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism and Financing of Illegal Organizations in United Arab Emirates. Here we will see Imprisonment and Penalties for Money Laundering Crime in UAE in detail.

The crime of Money Laundering is considered as an independent crime. The punishment of the perpetrator for the predicate offence shall not prevent his punishment for the crime of Money Laundering.

Penalties and Imprisonment under Clause (1) of Article 2 of this Decree-Law

Any person who commits or attempts to commit any of the acts set forth in Clause (1) of Article 2 of this Decree-Law shall be sentenced to imprisonment for a period not exceeding ten years and to a fine of no less than (100,000) AED one hundred thousand and not exceeding (5,000,000) AED five Million or either one of these two penalties.

Temporary Imprisonment under Law

A temporary imprisonment and a fine of no less than AED 300,000 (three hundred thousand dirham) and no more than AED 10,000,000 (ten million dirham) shall be applied if the perpetrator of a money laundering crime commits any of the following acts:

a) If he abuses his influence or the power granted to him by his profession or professional activities.

b) If the crime is committed through a non-profit organisation.

c) If the crime is committed through an organized crime group.

d) In case of Recidivism

An attempt to commit a money laundering offense shall be punishable by the full penalty prescribed for it

A life imprisonment sanction or temporary imprisonment of no less than (10) ten years and penalty of no less than AED 300,000 (three hundred thousand dirham) and no more than AED 10,000,000 (ten million dirham) is applied to anyone who uses Proceeds for terrorist financing.

A temporary imprisonment sanction and a penalty of no less than AED 300,000 (three hundred thousand dirham) shall be applicable to anyone who uses the Proceeds in financing illegal organisations.

The Court may commute or exempt from the sentence imposed on the offenders if they provide the judicial or administrative authorities with information relating to any of the offenses punishable in this article, when this leads to the disclosure, prosecution, or arrest of the perpetrators.

Article (23)

1- A penalty of no less than AED 500,000 (five hundred thousand) and no more than AED 50,000,000 (fifty million dirham) shall apply to any legal person whose representatives or managers or agents commit for its account or its name any of the crimes mentioned in this Decree-Law.

2- If the legal person is convicted with terrorism financing crime, the court will order its dissolution and closure of its offices where its activity is performed.

3- Upon issuance of the indictment, the court shall order the publishing of a summary of the judgment by the appropriate means at the expense of condemned party.

Article (24)

Imprisonment and a fine of no less than AED 100,000 (one hundred thousand) and no more than AED 1,000,000 (one million dirham) or any of those two sanctions is applied to anyone who violates on purpose or by gross negligence the provision Article (15) of this Decree Law.

Article (25)

Imprisonment for no less than six months and a penalty of no less than AED 100,000 (one hundred thousand dirham) and no more than AED 500,000 (five hundred thousand dirham) or any of these two sanctions shall apply to anyone who notifies or warns a person or reveals any transaction under review in relation to suspicious transactions or being investigated by the competent authorities.

Imprisonment or a fine of no less than AED 50,000 (fifty thousand dirham) and no more than AED 5,000,000 (five million dirham) shall be applied to anyone who violates the instruction issued by the Relevant Authority in the UAE for the implementation of the directives of UN Security Council under Chapter (7) of UN Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism and Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction and other related decisions

General Penalties under the UAE Law

Imprisonment or a fine of no less than AED 10,000 (ten thousand dirhams) and no more than AED 100,000 (one hundred thousand dirhams) shall be applied to any person who violates any other provision of this Decree-Law.