How to Report

The preferred method of reporting is the electronic submission of Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs). The advantages of the SAR online system are that it:

(a) Allows for 24/7 reporting.

(b) Is secure.

(d) Enables SOCA to make SAR information more speedily available to investigators.

(e) Speeds up the identification and management of SARs requiring SOCA’s consent to proceed.

The United Kingdom Financial Intelligence Unit (UKFIU) receives SARs by post, fax and electronically. The first two methods require manual processing - scanning of documents, deciphering of handwritten reports and data input - which can lead to delays in making the reports available to investigators.

Although a small number of businesses which submit high volumes of SARs have specific arrangements in place for encrypted electronic bulk data exchange, the majority of businesses use an online reporting form (“SAR Online”). This form is accessible via a link on the SOCA website www.soca.gov.uk or directly at SAR Online.

SAR Glossary of Terms

Please refer to the SAR Glossary of Terms (60.1kB PDF).

Consent SARs

The UKFIU manages the receipt, analysis and resolution of SARs where there is reported to be a ‘prohibited act’ under the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (POCA).

The effects of decisions

Where consent is granted, the reporter may proceed with the specified transaction, if they choose to do so, and will have a defence against the three principal money laundering offences relating to that activity.

Obtaining Consent

One of the defences to the money laundering offences in Sections 327-329 of POCA is the making of an authorised disclosure and the obtaining of appropriate consent.

An authorised disclosure (Section 338) is a disclosure which is made:

before a person carries out the act prohibited by Sections 327-329
while a person is carrying out the act prohibited by Sections 327-329, the act having begun at a point when the discloser did not know or suspect that the property is the proceeds of crime and the disclosure is made on the discloser's own initiative as soon as is practicable after s/he first knew or suspected that the property is the proceeds of crime, or
after the act prohibited by Sections 327-329 and is made on the discloser's own initiative as soon as practicable after the act.

Appropriate consent is the consent of a constable, customs officer or SOCA officer to proceed with a prohibited act (Section 335).

A key element of consent is the specification of time limits within which the authorities must respond to an authorised disclosure in circumstances where a consent decision is required. The law specifies that consent decisions must be made within seven working days. If nothing is heard within that time, then the discloser may proceed with an otherwise prohibited act with a defence against the three principal money laundering offences.

If consent is withheld within the seven working days, then the authorities have a further 31 calendar days in which to take further action, such as seeking a court order to restrain the assets in question. If nothing is heard after the end of the 31 day period, then the discloser can proceed with the transaction with a defence against the three principal money laundering offences.

When seeking consent it is important to identify as clearly as possible:

the suspected benefit from criminal conduct (the ‘criminal property’), including, where possible, the amount of benefit
the reason(s) for suspecting that property is criminal property
the proposed prohibited act(s) the reporter seeks to undertake involving the criminal property
the other party/parties involved in dealing with the criminal property including their dates of birth and addresses where appropriate (such information should be held routinely by reporters in the regulated sector in order to comply with the requirements of the Money Laundering Regulations).

All requests for appropriate consent are treated as a priority within SOCA. The aim is to provide the quickest possible response to a reporter. As soon as a decision has been made in relation to a request for consent it will be relayed to the reporter without delay.

Submitting a request for consent

Reporters are encouraged to make disclosures using SAR Online.

SAR Online also contains useful information on making a disclosure and links to relevant legislation. The SAR Online process provides an automatic acknowledgement of the report and the SOCA financial database unique reference number for the report.

In exceptional circumstances where reporters are unable to use SAR Online, they should fax their disclosure requesting consent to 020 7238 8286. In this instance reporters are encouraged to use SOCA’s preferred standard forms, which can be downloaded from the Reporting Forms page of the SOCA website.

Note: Regardless of the method of disclosure, reporters should ensure they tick the ‘consent required’ option and tick the option to indicate whether they are disclosing through POCA or the Terrorism Act 2000.

Reporters should not submit disclosures requiring consent through the post as this may delay the decision being relayed to the reporter.

Where reporters have submitted a consent disclosure electronically or via fax there is no requirement to post a duplicate report.

The notice period

The seven day notice period begins on the day after a disclosure is made. The notice period consists of seven working days and excludes Bank Holidays and weekends.

The purpose of the seven day notice period is to allow SOCA and its law enforcement partners time to risk assess, analyse, research and undertake further enquiries relating to the disclosed information in order to determine the best response to the request for consent. SOCA aims to provide the quickest possible response to the reporter, but some decisions to consent requests will take longer than others.

Notification of consent

In the first instance, a consent decision will usually be communicated to the reporter by telephone in order to provide the quickest possible response. SOCA will also send a letter by post recording the decision but there is no requirement to wait for this letter in order to proceed with the prohibited act if consent has been granted verbally.

SOCA is mindful of the sensitivity of SARs even within the same organisation and endeavours to communicate only with persons whose details are verifiable by SOCA. Reporters may therefore wish to appoint a specified deputy to deal with decisions relating to the consent request in their absence, in order to avoid delays.

Details of reporters/Money Laundering Reporting Officers (MLROs) and their deputies, including direct telephone numbers, should be registered with SOCA. Registration is available through SAR Online or through forms available on the SOCA website.

When consent is granted by SOCA, the reporter is free to undertake the reported prohibited act(s) without committing a money laundering offence in relation to the act(s). Consent does not extend to any acts or criminal property not detailed in the initial disclosure or agreed with SOCA.

The moratorium period

Where SOCA gives notice that consent to an act is refused, a further 31 day period (the ‘moratorium’) begins on the day that notice is given. The 31 days include Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays. It is an offence to undertake the act during this period as the participant would not have the appropriate consent. The moratorium period enables SOCA to further their investigation into the reported matter using the powers within POCA in relation to the criminal property (e.g. imposing a restraint order).

If the moratorium period expires and no such action has been taken, the reporter is free to proceed with the act(s) detailed in the initial disclosure.