2001
The FIC Act is passed
The Financial Intelligence Centre Act 38 of 2001 creates the FIC and the accountable-institution regime; duties phase in from 2002–2003 alongside the Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing Control Regulations (GN R1595 of December 2002).
2 May 2017
FIC Amendment Act 1 of 2017 assented
The risk-based era is legislated: RMCP-driven due diligence, beneficial ownership (s 21B), ongoing due diligence, PEP provisions.
2 Oct 2017
The prescriptive rules die
GN R1062 repeals the Regulations’ identification chapter and withdraws the exemptions (including Exemption 17). Guidance Note 7 lands the same day — introducing the 25% beneficial-ownership indicator as guidance. From this date there is no statutory list of FICA documents.
Why there is no list29 Nov 2022
Schedule 1 rewritten (GN 2800)
Effective 19 December 2022: credit providers, crypto asset service providers, TCSPs and high-value goods dealers (R100 000+) become accountable institutions; Schedule 3 reporting institutions abolished; the FIC gains direct supervision of legal practitioners.
The current list31 Dec 2022
GLAA 2022 FICA amendments in force
The General Laws (AML/CTF) Amendment Act 22 of 2022 tightens beneficial-ownership duties and extends the Act to proliferation financing — and separately creates the CIPC and Master’s beneficial-ownership registers under the Companies Act and TPCA.
Two regimes, one name24 Feb 2023
South Africa is grey-listed
The FATF places South Africa under increased monitoring over 22 action items spanning eight strategic deficiencies. Supervisory intensity across accountable institutions ramps up in response.
8 Aug 2024
PCC 59: the 5% era begins
The FIC’s beneficial-ownership communication strongly recommends treating 5%+ ownership as a controlling ownership interest, prescribes the three-step elimination, and confirms institutions cannot rely exclusively on the new registers.
The threshold, settled13 Nov 2024
R7.77m attorney-firm penalty upheld
The FIC Act Appeal Board upholds the penalty — TFS-screening and RMCP failures at its core. Legal-sector enforcement is now unmistakably real.
Lessons for law firms20 Dec 2024
Capitec sanctioned R56.25m
The Prudential Authority imposes seven cautions, a reprimand and R56.25m in penalties (R10.5m suspended) — the largest findings being customer due diligence failures.
The enforcement tracker13 Feb 2025
Guidance Note 7A
GN 7 is consolidated and updated; the 25% indicator survives one final edition at para 103.
30 Apr 2025
Directive 9: the crypto Travel Rule
CASPs must transmit originator and beneficiary information with crypto transfers — all transfers, deeper verification at R5 000+, no exemptions.
FICA for crypto1 Sep 2025
Revised Guidance Note 7A — the 25% indicator is deleted
The current core guidance replaces GN 7 and GN 7A: beneficial ownership defers to PCC 59, PEP terminology standardised (FPEP/DPEP/PIP), TFS coverage extended, RMCP board approval non-delegable.
The source library24 Oct 2025
South Africa exits the grey list
The FATF delists South Africa after 32 months, the action items substantially addressed — including demonstrated CDD supervision and enforcement. Treasury is explicit that the work, and the inspections, continue.
What it means14 Jan 2026
Draft General Laws (AML/CTF) Amendment Bill gazetted
Published for comment (GN 6997, GG 53955; comments closed 2 March 2026): sanctions, information-sharing including lifestyle audits, NPO supervision, new-technology provisions. Nothing in the draft changes the CDD framework described in this hub.
1 Apr 2026
Directive 11 risk-and-compliance-return cycle
The current RCR cycle takes effect — non-submission of the return remains the most common cause of FIC sanctions.
The duty stack2026–2027
The next FATF mutual evaluation
South Africa’s fifth-round evaluation begins in 2026 and concludes in 2027, under a methodology that scores effectiveness — investigations, inspections and sanctions — not legislation on paper. The strongest reason to expect supervision to keep intensifying.
Why the timeline matters
Almost every piece of conflicting FICA advice is two sources quoting different points on this line: a 2016 checklist demanding documents repealed in 2017; a 2023 article stating the 25% indicator deleted in 2025; a pre-2022 guide that has never heard of high-value goods dealers. Every page in this hub states the position as at the date stamped at its top, and the instruments themselves are collected in the source library.