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Skillskyc-identifikationspflicht

kyc-identifikationspflicht

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Updated 10-15 20:08

About this skill

/geldwaesche-aml-kyc:kyc-identifikationspflicht

Purpose

The skill structures the KYC check ("Know your customer") under §§ 10 et seq. GwG: identification of the contracting partner, determination of the beneficial owner, transparency register query, clarification of the purpose and nature of the business relationship as well as ongoing monitoring. It distinguishes between general, simplified and enhanced due diligence and ensures compliance with the record-keeping obligation under § 8 GwG (5 years).

⚠️ Currency (as of 2026-07): The GwG remains the operationally decisive law. KYC checks are carried out today under §§ 10 et seq. GwG — not under the AMLR. However, the EU AML package is already changing work planning:

  • AMLA (Anti-Money Laundering Authority, Regulation (EU) 2024/1620) has been operationally active in Frankfurt am Main since 01.07.2025.
  • AMLD6 (Directive (EU) 2024/1640): The transposition deadline for Art. 11–13 and 15 — the provisions on the registers of beneficial owners — expired on 10.07.2026. The general transposition deadline of the Directive runs until 10.07.2027.
  • AMLR (Regulation (EU) 2024/1624) applies from 10.07.2027 as directly applicable Single Rulebook. It largely replaces the substantive due diligence obligations of the GwG; national transposition is not required and is not to be awaited.
  • The majority of the AMLA Level 2/Level 3 measures were due by 10.07.2026 ; an extensive pipeline of approximately 23 RTS/ITS and guidelines is still open. Timelines and content must be monitored on an ongoing basis.
  • EU-wide cash limit of EUR 10,000; Member States may set lower limits. For Germany, the specific implementation must be checked against the law in force. [unverifiziert - prüfen]

Ongoing task: The information in the transparency register must be aligned with the 25% threshold and reconciled with the data collected in-house; the existing GwG procedures must be mapped to the AMLR Single Rulebook by 10.07.2027 (see Step 9).

Inputs

  • Type of obligated entity under § 2 GwG
  • Transaction (establishment of a business relationship / individual transaction / suspicious case)
  • Contracting partner (natural person / legal person / partnership / trust / foundation)
  • Shareholding and control structure, insofar as known
  • for cash / art / precious metals: transaction volume (thresholds)
  • Risk class from the risk analysis (§ 5 GwG, see skill gwg-risikoanalyse)
  • special indicators: PEP status, high-risk country reference, unusual structure

Sub-agent architecture

Researcher provides §§ 10–17 GwG, §§ 3 et seq. GwG, Transparency Register standards §§ 18–26 GwG, BaFin and FIU guidance as well as commentary passages (Herzog, Bülte). Drafter prepares the KYC memo with an identification checklist, beneficial ownership analysis and recommendation on the level of obligations. Reviewer checks completeness of the identification data, correct application of § 14 / § 15, Transparency Register reconciliation, record-keeping obligation and reference to follow-up obligations (in particular § 43 GwG).

Procedure

1. Trigger of the identification obligation (§ 10 III GwG)

The obligation applies in the case of:

  • Establishment of a business relationship (§ 10 III No. 1 GwG) — regardless of volume
  • Individual transaction outside a business relationship:
    • Cash ≥ EUR 15,000 (or several smaller ones that are apparently connected) (§ 10 III No. 2 GwG)
    • Goods traders: cash ≥ EUR 10,000 (§ 4 V GwG); precious metal traders: EUR 2,000 (§ 4 V GwG) [unverifiziert – aktuellen Schwellenwert prüfen]
    • Art trade / art intermediaries: EUR 10,000 (also non-cash in certain constellations) [unverifiziert]
  • Suspicion of money laundering or terrorist financing (§ 10 III No. 3 GwG) — regardless of any threshold and regardless of the level of obligations
  • Doubts as to the accuracy or completeness of previously collected data (§ 10 III No. 4 GwG)

2. Identification of the contracting partner (§ 11 GwG)

Natural person (§ 11 IV No. 1 GwG): name (first and last name), place of birth, date of birth, nationality, address. Evidence: valid identification document within the meaning of § 12 I 1 No. 1 GwG (identity card, passport, passport substitute). Recording of document number, issuing authority, validity.

Legal person / partnership (§ 11 IV No. 2 GwG): company name, name or designation, legal form, register number (if available), address of registered office / principal place of business, members of the representative body / legal representatives. Evidence: extract from the commercial / cooperative / association / partnership / foundation register or an equivalent official register.

Identification procedure (§ 12 I GwG): presentation of the original / qualified electronic signature / video identification (BaFin Circular 3/2017 on video identification [unverifiziert]) / eID function / notary/lawyer intermediation (§ 12 I 2 GwG).

3. Beneficial owner (§ 3 GwG)

Actual beneficial owner (§ 3 II GwG, legal person without a stock exchange law exception):

  • any natural person who directly or indirectly
    • more than 25% of the capital shares, or
    • more than 25% of the voting rights, or
    • exercises control in a comparable manner

Fictitious beneficial owner (§ 3 II 5 GwG): If, after exhausting all possibilities, no actual beneficial owner can be determined, the legal representative, managing shareholder or partner is deemed to be the beneficial owner. The fiction is to be substantiate and to document — it is not a default.

For trusts / fiduciary arrangements / non-legal-capacity foundations (Section 3 III GwG): settlors, trustees, protectors, beneficiaries, as well as other natural persons with controlling influence.

4. Transparency Register reconciliation (Sections 18–26 GwG)

Since the switch to the full register (Transparency Register and Financial Information Act, in force since 01.08.2021) [unverifiziert – Datum prüfen] obligated entities must query the Transparency Register for legal entities / partnerships / trusts / foundations and compare it with the beneficial ownership data they have collected themselves reconcile (Section 11 V GwG in conjunction with Section 23a GwG [unverifiziert – §-Verweis prüfen]).

Discrepancy report (Section 23a GwG): If the register information deviates from the data collected itself, a discrepancy must be reported to the register-maintaining BVA — this is not a suspicious activity report pursuant to Section 43 GwG and is not subject to the tipping-off prohibition of Section 47 GwG (contested; prevailing view in BaFin-AuA).

5. Level of obligations (depending on the risk analysis)

Level of obligations Trigger Measures
simplified due diligence Section 14 GwG demonstrably low risk (e.g. listed EEA stock corporation, domestic authorities) reduced scope of identification, relaxed updating
general due diligence Section 10 GwG standard case identification, beneficial ownership, purpose, continuous monitoring
enhanced due diligence Section 15 GwG PEP Section 1 XII; high-risk third-country connection Section 15 III No. 2; complex / unusual structure Section 15 III No. 3; correspondent banking relationship outside the EEA management approval, origin of assets / funds, enhanced ongoing monitoring

6. Clarification of purpose and type (Section 10 I No. 2 GwG)

Document the plausibility of the business purpose. In case of discrepancy between the stated purpose and observed transaction behavior: escalation to the AML officer, if applicable Section 43 GwG review.

7. Recording and retention (Section 8 GwG)

5 years from the end of the business relationship or from the completion of the individual transaction. The recording obligation includes identification data, copies of the documents, risk classification, monitoring findings.

8. Follow-up obligation: suspicious activity report

KYC findings can trigger the reporting obligation pursuant to Section 43 GwG (Skill verdachtsmeldung-fiu). In case of suspicion: carry out identification anyway (Section 10 IX GwG only narrowly excludes termination), but no tipping-off and standstill obligation must be observed.

9. Transition to the EU AML package (AMLR / AMLD6 / AMLA)

The KYC review itself currently follows the GwG. In parallel, the transition must be prepared:

a) Align UBO data with the 25% threshold. The implementation deadline for the register provisions of the AMLD6 (Art. 11–13, 15) expired on 10.07.2026. Transparency register entries and internally held beneficial owner data must be measured against the requirement that every natural person with more than 25 % of capital interest, voting rights or comparable control is recorded completely, currently and with a documented chain of control. Historically grown holdings with an incomplete chain of indirect participation are the typical finding.

b) Gap mapping GwG → AMLR by 10.07.2027. The AMLR (Regulation (EU) 2024/1624) applies from 10.07.2027 directly. Existing KYC procedure instructions must be mapped obligation by obligation onto the AMLR chapters and sorted into three categories:

Category Meaning Action
congruent GwG obligation corresponds to the AMLR obligation replace the legal reference
tightened AMLR requires more than the GwG adapt process and IT, plan lead time
omitted / divergent national particularity without AMLR equivalent review deletion — full harmonisation permits national additional obligations only to a limited extent

c) Track the AMLA level 2 pipeline. A considerable proportion of the technical regulatory and implementing standards and guidelines due by 10.07.2026 (order of magnitude approx. 23 RTS/ITS/Guidelines) is still outstanding. They specifically flesh out the due diligence obligations. Until their publication, detailed specifications are to be marked as provisional ; a person responsible for monitoring is to be designated.

d) Prepare for selection for direct AMLA supervision. The AMLA will supervise a limited number of cross-border, particularly high-risk obliged entities directly . Affected institutions should examine whether they may be considered and bring documentation, data quality and points of contact up to a supervizable level. The specific selection criteria and the timetable are to be verified against the AMLA Regulation and AMLA publications. [unverifiziert - prüfen]

Sources and citation style

Binding: ../../../references/zitierweise.md.

Statute

Administrative regulations

  • BaFin, AuA on the GwG, General Part + Special Part
  • BaFin circular on video identification [unverifiziert – aktuelles Rundschreiben prüfen]
  • FIU-AuA for the non-financial sector

Commentaries

  • Herzog, GwG, Xth ed. Year, §§ 10, 11, 3 (with commentary on WB) [unverifiziert – Auflage prüfen]
  • Bülte, GwG, §§ 10 et seq. [unverifiziert]
  • Kreitmair, GwG, §§ 3, 11 [unverifiziert]

Case law ([unverifiziert – prüfen in juris])

  • KG / OLG case law on fine proceedings for defective KYC [unverifiziert]
  • BGH on the civil liability of credit institutions for KYC failures (area of direct debit returns / account opening) [unverifiziert]

Output format

KYC-MEMO — §§ 10, 11, 3 GwG
Verpflichteter: <Firma>, § 2 I Nr. <…> GwG
Vorgang: <Geschäftsbeziehung / Einzeltransaktion / Anlass>
Stand: <Datum>

I.   Trigger der Identifizierungspflicht
     - <§ 10 III Nr. 1/2/3/4 GwG, Begründung>

II.  Vertragspartner-Identifizierung § 11 GwG
     - Personendaten / Firma / Register
     - Belegart und -nummer
     - Identifizierungsverfahren § 12 GwG

III. Wirtschaftlich Berechtigter §§ 3 ff. GwG
     - Beteiligungs- / Kontrollkette
     - tatsächlicher WB oder fiktiver WB (Begründung)
     - Transparenzregister-Abgleich (Treffer / Unstimmigkeit?)

IV.  Pflichtenniveau
     - § 14 / § 10 / § 15 GwG (Begründung)
     - PEP-Status, Hochrisikodrittstaat, komplexe Struktur

V.   Zweck und Art der Geschäftsbeziehung
     - Plausibilität, beobachtetes Transaktionsverhalten

VI.  Aufzeichnung § 8 GwG
     - Aufbewahrung 5 Jahre, Speicherort, Verantwortlicher

VII. Folgepflichten
     - Monitoring-Trigger
     - Hinweis auf § 43 GwG (Verdachtsmeldung) — falls einschlägig

VII-a. Übergang EU-AML-Paket
     - UBO-Daten an 25-%-Schwelle ausgerichtet (AMLD6 Art. 11–13, 15; Frist 10.07.2026): <…>
     - Gap-Mapping GwG → AMLR (Anwendung 10.07.2027): <deckungsgleich / verschärft / entfällt>
     - AMLA-Level-2-Pipeline (offene RTS/ITS/Leitlinien): <Verantwortlicher, Stand>
     - Kandidat für direkte AMLA-Aufsicht? <ja / nein / offen>

VIII. Risiken / offene Punkte
     🟢 / 🟡 / 🔴

IX.  Quellenverzeichnis

Example (excerpt, legal opinion style)

III. Beneficial owner

The contracting party is A-GmbH (HRB 12345 AG Munich). According to the list of shareholders, the shareholder is B-Holding S.à r.l. (Luxembourg) with 100%; its shares are held 60% by a Cypriot C-Holding Ltd. and 40% by a natural person Y. C-Holding is in turn held by a Jersey trust whose beneficiary according to the trust deed is a natural person X. Thus X indirectly holds 60% × 100% = 60% of A-GmbH and is the beneficial owner within the meaning of § 3 II 1 No. 1 GwG; likewise Y with 40%. Both must be entered in the transparency register pursuant to §§ 11 V, 23a GwG or reconciled there. The structure via Jersey trust is a risk factor within the meaning of § 15 III No. 3 GwG (complex structure), so enhanced due diligence must be applied (cf. Herzog, GwG, § 15 marginal no. 20 et seq. [unverifiziert]).

Risks / typical errors

  • Identification via copy without presentation of the original / video ident / eID outside the legally permitted procedures — invalid, fine § 56 GwG.
  • Fictitious WB as default without a documented attempt at investigation — § 3 II 5 GwG requires priority investigation of the actual WB.
  • Failure to reconcile with the transparency register or failure to report a discrepancy — breach of § 23a GwG [unverifiziert – konkrete Norm prüfen].
  • PEP status disregarded — § 1 XII GwG also covers family members and close associates; enhanced due diligence pursuant to § 15 III No. 1 GwG is mandatory.
  • High-risk third-country list not queried (delegated regulation of the COM) — risk under § 15 III No. 2 GwG overlooked.
  • Record < 5 years / storage location not accessible to supervision — infringement of § 8 GwG.
  • Suspicion indicator overlooked and KYC review treated as routine — consequence: failure to file under § 43, possibly § 261 StGB.
  • Applied AMLR prematurely as current law — the AMLR applies only from 10.07.2027. Anyone who bases a KYC review today on the AMLR instead of §§ 10 et seq. GwG is reviewing contrary to current law; until then, the GwG remains operationally decisive.
  • Waited for national implementation of the AMLR — the AMLR is a regulation and applies directly. Only the AMLD6 is implemented. Anyone who ties the need for transition to a German implementing act loses the head start until 10.07.2027.
  • UBO deadline 10.07.2026 passed without data cleansing — the AMLD6 register provisions (Art. 11–13, 15) were to be implemented by that date. Incomplete chains of indirect participation above the 25% threshold are the typical supervisory audit finding.
  • Treated AMLA level-2 standards as already final — a large portion of the RTS/ITS and guidelines due by 10.07.2026 (approx. 23) is still open. Detailed specifications based on them are to be marked as provisional.
  • Cash limit set incorrectly — the EU-wide limit is 10,000 EUR, however Member States may provide for lower limits. Never rely solely on the EU value without checking national law; the GwG thresholds (§ 10 III No. 2, § 4 V GwG) remain decisive until the AMLR begins to apply.
  • Direct AMLA supervision not considered — institutions operating cross-border with an elevated risk profile can be placed directly under the AMLA; data quality and documentation must be aligned accordingly.