AMLO Explains Announcement on Politically Exposed Persons to Prevent Corruption and Money Laundering by Officials

AMLO clarified that the announcement on “politically exposed persons” covers the executive, judiciary, and independent organizations, supports government policies, and aims to prevent the country’s financial system from being exploited as a channel for money laundering by state officials.  

At 16:34 on 5 Dec 2025 GMT+7, reporters noted that the Anti-Money Laundering Office (AMLO) Facebook page published a news document stating that AMLO has issuedan announcement regarding politically exposed persons.This announcement was issued pursuant to the Ministerial Regulation on Customer Due Diligence (CDD) B.E. 2563 (2020), was published in the Government Gazette on 4 Dec 2025 GMT+7, and will come into effect on 2 Feb 2026 GMT+7.

The announcement supports the government’s policy to prevent and suppress corruption and money laundering, and complies with international principles under the United Nations Convention against Corruption (UNCAC) and global standards for anti-money laundering and counter-financing of terrorism set by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). These require countries to implement customer due diligence measures for politically exposed persons (PEPs), who are considered high-risk clients.

To ensure effective oversight in line with international standards, AMLO has defined the positions considered politically exposed persons, covering key roles in the executive, legislative, judiciary, independent agencies, state agencies, state enterprises, military units, local administrative organizations, as well as important foreign and international organization officials. This serves as guidance for financial institutions and reporting entities to assess risks and properly conduct CDD and enhanced due diligence (EDD) according to law and international standards.

. The purpose of these measures is to prevent the country’s financial system from being used as a channel for money laundering by state officials, and to enhance transparency in financial transactions. AMLO would like to clarify the following:

1. Identifying PEP positions to assess customer risk levels.

• Financial institutions and reporting entities under anti-money laundering laws must conduct enhanced due diligence (EDD) to verify customer information thoroughly to mitigate potential money laundering risks.
• Persons identified as PEPs have no additional obligations and may conduct transactions with financial institutions and reporting entities as usual.
• Identifying a person as a PEP under the law is not an accusation of wrongdoing.
• There is no requirement to report PEP transactions unless they meet reportable thresholds set by law, such as transactions exceeding reporting limits or those deemed suspicious.

2. Financial institutions and reporting entities have the following duties under the CDD ministerial regulation:

• Verify whether customers are PEPs.
• Request additional information, such as the source of funds or wealth.
• Obtain approval from senior management before establishing a business relationship.
• Closely monitor transactions according to EDD measures.
• Report transactions when there is a reasonable suspicion.

AMLO remains committed to continuously developing and enhancing laws, policies, and supervisory measures to strengthen transparency, financial resilience, and support the government’s mission to prevent and combat corruption and money laundering in line with international standards.