The UAE's Anti-Money Laundering and Combating the Financing of Terrorism framework, established under Federal Decree-Law No. 20 of 2018, imposes specific obligations on a broad range of businesses, including financial institutions, DNFBPs, real estate agents, gold and precious metals dealers, and corporate service providers. An AML audit provides independent assurance that a business's AML controls, policies and customer due diligence procedures meet the standards required by UAE law.
CashLaw Global conducts AML audits for UAE businesses subject to AML obligations, reviewing the adequacy and effectiveness of the AML control framework against the requirements of Federal Decree-Law No. 20 of 2018, Cabinet Decision No. 10 of 2019 and the standards of the relevant supervisory authority, whether the Central Bank, the FIU, RERA, or the relevant free zone regulator. Our AML audit covers the design and implementation of the AML/CFT policy, the adequacy of customer risk assessment and CDD procedures, the effectiveness of transaction monitoring, and the adequacy of staff training.
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Book Free ConsultationAn AML audit independently tests the adequacy of your firm's internal AML/CFT policies. It reviews whether your client onboarding processes follow correct Know Your Customer (KYC) and Ultimate Beneficial Owner (UBO) guidelines, checks risk-rating methodologies, evaluates employee training logs, and verifies reporting timelines via the goAML portal.
Yes. Regulatory bodies (including the Ministry of Economy and DFSA) mandate that DNFBPs (real estate, precious metals, legal/accounting firms) periodically subject their compliance frameworks to independent audit testing to prove systemic efficacy.
Neglecting to test internal AML frameworks independently can expose an entity to severe compliance flags during Ministry of Economy field inspections, which carry administrative fines starting from AED 50,000.