The European Commission has followed the example of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) by removing the Philippines from its list of high-risk jurisdictions.

In February, FATF removed of the Philippines from its “grey list” after the country addressed strategic deficiencies in the areas of anti-money laundering (AML), counter-terrorist financing (CTF), and counter-proliferation financing (CPF), as identified during previous mutual evaluations.

On Tuesday, the European Commission officially announced that the Philippines, along with Barbados, Gibraltar, Jamaica, Senegal, Turkey, Uganda, and the United Arab Emirates, has been removed from the list of high-risk jurisdictions under the AML/CTF regime.

The Commission explained that these removals were based on the work of the FATF and, in particular, its list of “Jurisdictions under Increased Monitoring.”

“As a founding member of the FATF, the Commission actively monitors the progress of the listed countries and helps them fully implement the action plans agreed upon with the FATF. Alignment with the FATF is crucial for maintaining the EU’s commitment to upholding global standards,” the statement said.

“These countries have strengthened the effectiveness of their AML/CTF regimes and addressed technical deficiencies by fulfilling the commitments outlined in their FATF action plans,” it added.

At the same time, the European Commission updated its list of high-risk jurisdictions by adding Algeria, Angola, Côte d’Ivoire, Kenya, Laos, Lebanon, Monaco, Namibia, Nepal, and Venezuela.

Specifically, Laos is required to improve risk-based supervision of casinos, banks, and reporting entities, including the implementation of proper fit-and-proper checks. Nepal must strengthen its risk-based supervision of commercial banks, high-risk cooperatives, casinos, dealers in precious metals and stones, and the real estate sector.

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