The Government is to push back the deadline for businesses to register under the new Anti-Money Laundering (AML) regulations from January 10 to June 10 next year.

The five-month delay comes in the wake of pandemic restrictions, giving art market and other firms more time to set up compliance structures.

The proposal to change the deadline was tucked away in a draft Statutory Instrument updating details of the new law after emergency measures to deal with the pandemic and lockdown meant diverting attention away from preparations for AML enforcement.

In an Artnet News piece breaking the update, Associate Editor Naomi Rae quoted our CEO Susan J Mumford:

“The delay is welcome and appropriate under the circumstances, as preparations need to be thorough and accurately targeted.”

Naomi continues:

Mumford has been working with the government to develop guidelines for the art market, but she adds that the temporary reprieve should not be used as an excuse to de-prioritize becoming compliant, as the consequences for businesses neglecting their responsibility to do so could be serious.

“A lot of people have been very worried about their ability to meet their obligations because they fear the compliance measures will be too complicated, time consuming, and costly,” Mumford says. “We are working hard to ensure that this is not the case because if the system is not user-friendly, it will not be effective.”

See the full piece published on 25th August 2020 by Naomi Rae: https://news.artnet.com/market/uk-delays-anti-money-laundering-rules-1903930 .