The Financial Action Task Force (FATF) is an intergovernmental policy-making body that sets anti-terrorist financing and anti-money laundering standards. These standards are used to assess the adequacy of laws and regulations in nearly every country in the world. Since 9/11, FATF has increased its focus on regulation of financial services and charities. In doing so, it created Recommendation 8 (R8) on laws relating to nonprofit organizations. Although FATF has taken positive steps since 2012 to prevent abuse or misapplication of its program, more needs to be done to ensure that anti-terrorist financing laws cut the flow of money to terrorists, not to civil society. CSOs must pay close attention to the workings of FATF to prevent new laws that impede their work.
Global NPO Coalition on FATF
Since 2012, the Global NPO Coalition on FATF has helped civil society raise its voice with FATF at the national level. It has coordinated responses to draft revisions of FATF’s Best Practices Paper and Typology Report, as well as working to develop a formal consultation process with FATF. More recently, it has worked for changes in R8 and its accompanying Interpretive Note (see p. 54).
Featured Resources
Global NPO Coalition on FATF Presents: ABCs for Risk Assessment of the Nonprofit Sector in Your Country
Friday, March 9, 2018 View the Recording Ever since FATF revised its Recommendation 8 on nonprofit organizations in 2016, countries must conduct a terrorist financing risk assessment of the nonprofit sector. FATF requires government
Case Study: U.S. Nonprofit Organizations and the FATF Mutual Evaluation Process 2015-16
This case study of the Financial Action Task Force’s (FATF) evaluation of the United States, which took place in 2015-2016, reviews the experience of nonprofit organizations (NPOs) seeking to provide input to the evaluation team and
FATF Adopts Guidance on Bank Customer Due Diligence
At its November 2017 plenary session the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) approved two documents relevant to nonprofit financial access concerns. First FATF adopted a customer due diligence supplement to its 2013 FATF Guidance
Charity & Security Network Submits Comments on Saudi Arabia’s Treatment of NPOs for FATF Evaluation
The Financial Action Task Force’s (FATF) Recommendation 8 (R8) on Nonprofit Organizations (NPOs) is among 40 standards it uses to evaluate country anti-money laundering/counterterrorist financing programs. FATF is now conducting an evaluation of the Kingdom
Report Examines FATF Recommendations as Vehicle for Closing Civil Society Space in Nigeria
Prior to its revision in 2016, the Financial Action Task Force's Recommendation 8 referred to nonprofit organizations as "particularly vulnerable" to terrorist abuse. As a result, many countries implemented laws and policies designed to
Report: Impact of Banking Restrictions on UK NGOs
Like their American counterparts, British NGOs working in or near areas where non-state armed groups are active increasingly face restrictions on their access to the financial system, according to a 2017 report from Chatham