Anti-Money Laundering Office

Scope

Thailand's financial intelligence unit (FIU) plus an asset-tracing and forfeiture authority. Receives suspicious-transaction reports (STRs) and cash / threshold transaction reports (CTRs) from reporting entities; investigates predicate offences listed in Section 3 of the AML Act.

Key Powers

• • Receive and analyse STRs and CTRs from banks, securities firms, insurers, professionals, and other reporting entities
• • Apply for civil-forfeiture orders against assets connected to listed predicate offences
• • Freeze suspect assets pending investigation (Section 48 of the AML Act, with court review)
• • Issue compliance notifications and conduct on-site inspections of reporting entities
• • Liaise with foreign FIUs (Egmont Group member) for cross-border investigations

Enforcement Examples

• Asset-forfeiture cases published in the AMLO annual report
• Periodic regulatory fines on reporting entities for KYC / STR-filing failures

How Foreigners Interact

Foreigners with Thai bank accounts complete enhanced KYC and may have transactions reported as STRs / CTRs at threshold levels; foreign-source funds entering Thailand may be reviewed if predicate-offence flags arise; lawyers, accountants, and real-estate agents in Thailand are themselves reporting entities under the AML Act.

Related Laws & Topics