EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES ) 
First Regular Session 
)
SENATE
S.B. NO.
1545
Introduced by SENATOR IMEE R. MARCOS
AN ACT
STRENGTHENING REPUBLIC ACT NO. 9160, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE 
ANTI-MONEY LAUNDERING ACT OF 2001, AS AMENDED
EXPLANATORY NOTE
Article II, Section 5 of the 1987 Constitution States that, " the maintenance of 
peace and order, the protection of life, liberty, and property, and the promotion of the 
general welfare are essential for the enjoyment by all the people of the blessings of 
democracy."
Republic Act No. 9160, otherwise known as the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 
2001 was passed into law on 29 September 2001, which created the Anti-Money 
Laundering Council and instituted measures to protect and preserve the integrity of 
the Philippine financial system. Throughout the years, several amendments to R.A. 
No. 9160 were made to address identified deficiencies in the country's anti-money 
laundering law.
On October 2019, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) threatened to include 
the Philippines in its 'grey-list' if it fails to enact and implement the following necessary 
amendments: (1) include real estate agents as covered persons, (2) include tax crimes 
as predicate offenses to money laundering, (3) come up with a targeted financial 
sanction framework relating to terrorist financing and proliferation of weapons of mass 
destruction, and (4) FATF's recommendations to expand the powers and 
responsibilities of the AMLC.


Being under the grey-list will have a number of negative implications, such as 
higher costs and delay in remittance for the overseas Filipino workers, higher interest 
rates or less competitive rates to offer for Philippine banks and businesses, and 
decrease in ease of doing international business. Furthermore, grey-listing comes with 
reduced investor and lender confidence which may result to limited access to banking 
or financial services and high borrowing rates, both internationally and domestically, 
to attract lenders.
The Philippines currently faces two other problems with regards to money 
laundering: (1) internet-based casinos, or the Philippine offshore gaming operations 
(POGO) where the suspicious transactions in the amount of PhP14 billion within a two- 
year period were flagged by the AMLC, and (2) the influx of foreign currencies with 
an estimated amount of $633 million was reported to have been brought into the 
country from September 2019 to March 2020.
To address the aforementioned problems and comply with global standards, 
this bill seeks to amend the current Anti-Money Laundering Act by adopting the key 
recommendations of the FATF and the AMLC. Among the notable proposed 
amendments of this bill is the inclusion of money service business companies, trust 
and company service providers, chip-washing or junket operators, real estate 
developers, and brokers and sales agent as covered persons. This bill also seeks to 
include violations of the Tax Code and many more as covered transaction.
In view of the foregoing, the passage of this bill is earnestly sought.
I f\.
IMEE R. MARCOS
Senator


EIGHTEENTH CONGRESS OF THE) 
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES ) 
First Regular Session 
)
S.B. NO.
SENATE
1545
¥
Introduced by SENATOR IMEE R. MARCOS
AN ACT
STRENGTHENING REPUBLIC ACT NO. 9160, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE 
ANTI-MONEY LAUNDERING ACT OF 2001, AS AMENDED
Be it enacted by the Senate and the House of Representatives of the Philippines in 
Congress assembled.
1 
SECTION 1. Section 3(a) of Republic Act No. 9160, as amended, is hereby
2 
amended to read as follows:
3
4 
"(a) 'Covered persons', natural or juridical, refer to:
5
6 
(1) banks, non-banks, quasi-banks, trust entities, foreign exchange
7 
dealers, pawnshops, money changers, remittance, [and] transfer
8 
companies, MONEY SERVICE BUSINESS OR MONEY
9 
TRANSFER COMPANIES, and other similar entities and ail other
10 
persons and their subsidiaries and affiliates supervised or regulated
11 
by the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP).
12 
(2) insurance companies, pre-need companies and all other persons
13 
supervised or regulated by the Insurance Commission (IC);
14 
(3) 
(i) securities dealers, brokers, salesmen, investment houses and
15 
other similar persons managing securities or rendering services as
16 
investment agent, advisor, or consultant, (ii) mutual funds, close-
17 
end investment companies, common trust funds and other similar
18 
persons, and (iii) other entities administering or otherwise dealing in
19 
currency, commodities or financial derivatives based thereon,
20 
valuable objects, cash substitutes and other similar monetary
21 
instruments or property supervised or regulated by Securities and
22 
Exchange Commission (SEC);


1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8 
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20 
21 
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
(4) 
jewelry dealers in precious metals, who, as a business, trade in 
precious metals, for transactions in excess of One million pesos 
(P1,000,000.00);
(5) 
jewelry dealers in precious stones, who, as a business, trade in 
precious metals, for transactions in excess of One million pesos 
(P1,000,000.00);
(6) 
TRUST AND company service providers - WHEN THEY PREPARE 
FOR OR CARRY OUT TRANSACTIONS FOR A CLIENT 
CONCERNING THE FOLLOWING ACTIVITIES: (i) acting as a 
formation agent of juridical persons; (ii) acting as (or arranging for 
another person to act as) a director or corporate secretary of a 
company, a partner of a partnership, or a similar position in relation 
to other juridical persons; (iii) providing a registered office, business 
address or accommodation, correspondence or administrative 
address for a company, a partnership or any other legal persons or 
arrangement; (iv) acting as (or arranging for another person to act 
as) a nominee shareholder for another person, AND (V) ACTING 
AS (OR ARRANGING ANOTHER PERSON TO ACT AS) A 
TRUSTEE OF AN EXPRESS TRUST OR PERFORMING THE 
EQUIVALENT FUNCTION FOR ANOTHER FORM OF LEGAL 
ARRANGEMENT;
(7) 
Persons, who provide any of the following services:
(i) 
Managing of client money, securities or other assets;
(ii) 
Management of bank, savings or securities accounts;
(iii) 
Organization of contributions for the creation, operation or 
management of companies; and
(iv) 
Creation, operation or management of juridical persons or 
arrangements, and buying and selling business entities.
Notwithstanding the foregoing, the term "covered persons" shall 
exclude lawyers [and accountants acting as independent legal 
professionals] acting in relation to information concerning their 
clients or where disclosure of information would compromise the 
attorney-client relationship; provided, that they are authorized to 
practice in the Philippines.
(7) casinos, including internet and ship-based casinos, with respect to 
their casino cash transactions related to their gaming operations,
AND OFFSHORE GAMING OPERATORS AS WELL AS THEIR 
SERVICE PROVIDERS.


1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8 
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20 
21 
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
(8) REAL ESTATE DEVELOPERS, BROKERS, AND SALES AGENT, 
DEFINED UNDER REPUBLIC ACT NO. 9546, OTHERWISE 
KNOWN AS THE "REAL ESTATE SERVICE ACT OF THE 
PHILIPPINES."
SECTION 2. Section 3(i) of the same Act, as amended, is hereby amended to 
read as follows;
(i) "Unlawful Activity" refers to any act or omission or series or combination 
thereof involving or having direct relation to the following:
XXX
(6)
Jueteng and Masiao, and other forms of gambling under Presidential 
decree No. 1602, AS AMENDED;
XXX
(19) Violations of Sections 4 to 6 of Republic Act No. 9208, otherwise known 
as the Anti-Trafficking in Persons Act of 2013, AS AMENDED;
XXX
(26) Violations of [Sections 1, 3 and 5 of Presidential Decree No. 1866, as 
amended, otherwise known as the decree Codifying the Laws on 
Illegal/Unlawful Possession, Manufacture, Dealing In, Acquisition or 
Disposition of Firearms, Ammunition or Explosives] REPUBLIC ACT 
NO. 10591, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE COMPREHENSIVE 
FIREARMS AND AMMUNITION REGULATION ACT;
XXX
(33) VIOLATIONS OF REPUBLIC ACT NO. 10175, OTHERWISE 
KNOWN AS THE CYBERCRIME PREVENTION ACT OF 2012;
(34) VIOLATIONS OF SECTION 19(A)(3) OF REPUBLIC ACT NO. 
10697, OTHERWISE KNOWN AS THE STRATEGIC 
MANAGEMENT ACT IN RELATION TO THE FINANCING OF 
PROLIFERATION OF WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION;


1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8 
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20 
21 
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
(35) VIOLATIONS OF SECTION 254, 255, 257, 258, 260, 261, 262, 
263, 264, 264-A, 264-B, 265 AND 265-A OF CHAPTER II, TITLE 
X OF THE NATIONAL INTERNAL REVENUE CODE OF 1997, AS 
AMENDED;
(36) VIOLATIONS 
OF REPUBLIC 
ACT NO 7653, OTHERWISE
KNOWN AS THE ACCESS DEVICES REGULATIONS ACT OF 1998;
(37) VIOLATIONS OF REPUBLIC ACT NO. 10173, OTHERWISE 
KNOWN AS THE DATA PRIVACY ACT OF 2012;
(38) VIOLATIONS 
OF REPUBLIC 
ACT NO. 7653, OTHERWISE
KNOWN AS THE NEW CENTRAL BANK ACT, AS AMENDED;
(39) VIOLATIONS 
OF REPUBLIC 
ACT NO. 8791, OTHERWISE
KNOWN AS THE GENERAL BANKING LAW;
(40) VIOLATIONS OF PRESIDENTIAL DECREE 612, OTHERWISE 
KNOWN AS THE INSURANCE CODE OF THE PHILIPPINES, AS 
AMENDED;
(41) Fraudulent practices and other violations under Republic Act No. 8799, 
otherwise known as the Securities Regulation Code of 2000; and
(42) Felonies and offenses of similar nature that are punishable under the 
penal laws of other countries.
SECTION 3. Section 3(L) of the same Act, as amended, is hereby amended to 
read as follows:
"(I) For purposes of covered persons under Section 3(A)(8)(7), the following 
terms are hereby defined as follows:
"(1) 'Casino' refers to a business authorized by the appropriate government 
agency to engage in gaming operations:
"(i) 'Internet-based casinos' shall refer a casinos in which persons 
participate by the use of remote communication facilities such as, 
but not limited to, internet, telephone, television, radio or any 
other kind of electronic or other technology for facilitating 
communication; and


1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8 
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20 
21 
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
"(ii) 'Ship-based casino' shall refer to casinos, the operation of which 
is undertaken on board a vessel, ship, boat or any other water- 
based craft wholly or partly intended for gambling;
"(2) 'Casino cash transaction' refers to transactions involving the receipt of 
cash by a casino paid by or on behalf of a customer, or transactions 
involving the payout of cash by a casino to a customer or to any person 
in his/her behalf;
"(3) 'Gaming operations' refer to the activities of the casino offering games of 
chance and any variations thereof approved by the appropriate 
government authorities."
"(4) 'OFFSHORE GAMING OPERATOR' REFERS TO AN ENTITY 
ENGAGED IN OFFERING ONLINE GAMES OF CHANCE OR 
SPORTING EVENTS VIA THE INTERNET USING A NETWORK 
AND SOFTWARE PROGRAM, EXCLUSIVELY TO OFFSHORE 
PLAYERS.
"(5) 'SERVICE PROVIDERS' REFER TO DULY CONSTITUTED 
BUSINESS CORPORATIONS WHO PROVIDE COMPONENTS OF 
OFFSHORE GAMING OPERATIONS TO OFFSHORE GAMING 
OPERATORS."
SECTION 4. There shall be items (M), and (N) inserted in Section 3 of the 
same Act, as amended, to read as follows:
'(M) 'FOR PURPOSES OF COVERED PERSONS UNDER SECTION 
3(A)(9), THE FOLLOWING TERMS ARE HEREBY DEFINED AS 
FOLLOWS:
"REAL ESTATE DEVELOPER" REFERS TO ANY NATURAL OR 
JURIDICAL PERSON ENGAGED IN THE BUSINESS OF DEVELOPING 
REAL ESTATE DEVELOPMENT PROJECT FOR HIS/HER OR ITS OWN 
ACCOUNT AND OFFERING THEM FOR SALE OR LEASE.
"REAL ESTATE BROKER" REFERS TO A DULY REGISTERED AND 
LICENSED NATURAL PERSON WHO, FOR A PROFESSIONAL FEE, 
COMMISSION OR OTHER VALUABLE CONSIDERATION, ACTS AS 
AN AGENT OF A PARTY IN A REAL ESTATE TRANSACTION TO 
OFFER, ADVERTISE, SOLICIT, LIST, PROMOTE, MEDIATE,


1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8 
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20 
21 
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
NEGOTIATE OR EFFECT THE MEETING OF THE MINDS ON THE 
SALE, PURCHASE, EXCHANGE, MORTGAGE, LEASE OR JOINT 
VENTURE, OR OTHER SIMILAR TRANSACTIONS ON REAL ESTATE 
OR ANY INTEREST THEREIN.
"(N) "TARGETED FINANCIAL SANCTIONS" REFERS TO BOTH ASSET 
FREEZING AND PROHIBITION TO PREVENT FUNDS OR OTHER 
ASSETS FROM BEING MADE AVAILABLE, DIRECTLY OR 
INDIRECTLY, FOR THE BENEFIT OF ANY INDIVIDUAL, NATURAL, 
OR LEGAL PERSONS OR ENTITY DESIGNATED PURSUANT TO 
RELEVANT UNITED NATIONS SECURITY COUNCIL 
RESOLUTIONS."
SECTION 5. Section 7 of the same Act, as amended, is hereby amended to 
read as follows:
"SEC. 7. Creation of Anti-Money Laundering Council (AMLC). - The Anti- 
Money Laundering Council is hereby created and shall be composed of the 
Governor of the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas as Chairman of the Securities and 
Exchange Commission, as members. The AMLC shall act unanimously in the 
discharge of its functions as defined hereunder:
XXX
(1) to require, receive, AND ANALYZE covered or suspicious transaction 
reports from covered persons;
XXX
(5) to investigate suspicious transactions and covered transactions deemed 
suspicious after [an investigation] DETERMINATION by AMLC, 
money laundering activities, and other violations of this Act. IN THE
CONDUCT OF ITS INVESTIGATIONS, THE AMLC MAY USE 
INVESTIGATION TECHNIQUES AVAILABLE TO OTHER LAW 
ENFORCEMENT AGENCIES, SUCH AS, BUT NOT LIMITED TO 
THE CONDUCT OF SEARCHES AND SEIZURES, WITNESS 
INTERVIEW, SURVEILLANCE, AND UNDERCOVER 
INVESTIGATION. AMLC INVESTIGATIONS SHALL BE KEPT 
STRICTLY CONFIDENTIAL FROM THE PUBLIC;
"(6) to apply before the Court of Appeals ex parte PETITION FOR 
ISSUANCE OF FREEZE ORDER, OR IN CASES SPECIFIED IN


1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8 
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20 
21 
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
SECTION 10 HEREOF, TO ISSUE AN EX PARTE FREEZE ORDER
for the freezing of any monetary instrument or property alleged to be 
laundered, proceeds from, or instrumentalities used in, or intended for 
use, IN ANY WAY RELATED TO any unlawful activity as defined in 
Section 3(i) hereof;
"(7) to implement such measures as may be necessary and justified under 
this Act to PREVENT OR counter act money laundering, AND
ENSURE COMPLIANCE AND EFFECTIVE IMPLEMENTATION OF 
THIS ACT;
X X X
"(13) TO REQUIRE THE SUBMISSION OF CROSS-BORDER 
DECLARATION ON PHYSICAL TRANSPORT OF CURRENCIES 
AND BEARER NEGOTIABLE INSTRUMENTS;
"(14) TO SET OR AMEND THRESHOLDS PROVIDED FOR UNDER 
THIS LAW BASED ON INTERNATIONAL ANTI-MONEY 
LAUNDERING/COMBATTING FINANCING OF TERRORISM 
STANDARDS AND THE RESULTS OF REGULAR NATIONAL RISK 
ASSESSMENT ON MONEY LAUNDERING AND TERRORISM 
FINANCING; AND
"(16) TO IMPLEMENT TARGETED FINANCIAL SANCTIONS, 
INCLUDING EX PARTE FREEZE, WITHOUT DELAY, AGAINST 
THE FUNDS AND OTHER ASSETS OF INDIVIDUALS OR 
ENTITIES DESIGNATED AND LISTED UNDER UNITED NATIONS 
SECURITY COUNCIL RESOLUTIONS RELATING TO THE 
PREVENTION, SUPPRESSION AND DISRUPTION OR 
PROLIFERATION OF WEAPONS OF MASS DESTRUCTION AND 
TERRORISM AND ITS FINANCING."
SECTION 6. Section 9 of the same Act, as amended, is hereby amended to 
read as follows:
"SEC. 9. Prevention of Money Laundering; Customer Identification
Requirements and Record Keeping. -
"(a) Customer Identification. - Covered institution shall establish and 
record the true identity of its clients based on official documents OR
RELIABLE AND INDEPENDENT SOURCES, DOCUMENTS, DATA


1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8 
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20 
21 
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
OR INFORMATION. They shall maintain a system of verifying the 
true identity of their clients and, in case of corporate clients, require 
a system of verifying their legal existence and organizational 
structure, as well as the authority and identification of all persons 
purporting to act on their behalf. THEY SHALL ALSO ASSESS AND, 
IF APPROPRIATE, OBTAIN INFORMATION ON THE PURPOSE 
AND NATURE OF THE TRANSACTION. COVERED PERSONS 
SHALL, LIKEWISE, CONDUCT ONGOING MONITORING ON 
THEIR CUSTOMERS, DEPENDING ON THE RISK ASSESSMENT.
XXX
"(b) Record Keeping. - All records of all transactions of covered 
institutions shall be maintained and safely stored for [five (5)] TEN 
(10) years from the dates of transactions. With respect to closed 
accounts, the records on customer identification, account files and 
business correspondence, shall be preserved and safely stored for at 
least [five (5)] TEN (10) years from the dates when they were 
closed.
"(c) Reporting of Covered Transactions OR SUSPICIOUS 
TRANSACTIONS. — Covered institutions shall report to the AMLC all 
covered OR SUSPICIOUS transactions within five (5) working days 
from occurrence thereof, unless the Supervising Authority concerned 
prescribes a longer period not exceeding ten (10) working days.
"When reporting covered or suspicious transactions to the AMLC, 
covered persons and their officers and employees are prohibited from 
communicating, directly or indirectly, in any manner or by any means, 
to any person or entity, the media, the fact that a covered or 
suspicious transaction has been reported or is about to be reported, 
the contents of the report, or any other information in relation thereto. 
Neither may such reporting be published or aired in any manner or 
form by the mass media", electronic mail, or other similar devices. In 
case of violation thereof, the concerned officer and employee of the 
covered person and media shall be held criminally liable.
"(C-1) IN THE COURSE OF VERIFYING WHETHER A 
TRANSACTION IS SUSPICIOUS OR NOT, A COVERED PERSON 
MAY TEMPORARILY WITHHOLD SAID TRANSACTION 
AND/OR SUBSEQUENT TRANSACTIONS FOR A PERIOD NO 
LONGER THAN FIVE WORKING DAYS FROM OCCURRENCE OF


1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8 
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20 
21 
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
THE TRANSACTION. THE COVERED PERSON SHALL 
IMMEDIATELY REPORT TO THE AMLC THAT IT HAD 
TEMPORARILY WITHHELD A TRANSACTION AND/OR 
SUBSEQUENT TRANSACTIONS AND THAT IT IS CONDUCTING 
VERIFICATION THEREOF. UPON REASONABLE BELIEF THAT 
THERE IS POSSIBLE VIOLATION OF THIS ACT, THE COVERED 
PERSON MAY TERMINATE THE TRANSACTION OR ACCOUNT 
CONNECTED THERETO. THE AUTHORITY TO TEMPORARILY 
WITHHOLD TRANSACTION SHALL BE MADE PART OF THE 
COVERED PERSON'S INTERNAL POLICY AND IT SHALL 
INCLUDE GUIDELINES AND EFFECTIVE CONTROLS TO 
PREVENT ABUSE.
COVERED PERSONS, THEIR OFFICERS, DIRECTORS AND 
EMPLOYEES SHALL NOT BE SUBJECT TO ANY ACTION, CLAIM 
OR DEMAND IN THE EXERCISE OF THEIR AUTHORITY UNDER 
THIS PROVISION, PROVIDED THAT, IT WAS EXERCISED IN 
THE REGULAR PERFORMANCE OF THEIR DUTIES, IN GOOD 
FAITH AND IN ACCORDANCE WITH THEIR POLICY, THIS ACT 
AND ITS IMPLEMENTING RULES AND REGULATIONS.
"Lawyers and accountants acting as independent legal professionals 
are not required to report covered and suspicious transactions if the 
relevant information was obtained in circumstances where they are 
subject to professional secrecy or legal professional privilege.
"Should a transaction be determined to be both a covered transaction 
and a suspicious transaction, the covered institution shall be required 
to report the same as suspicious transaction."
Section 7. Section 10 of the same Act is hereby, as amended, is hereby 
amended by inserting a new paragraph to read as follows:
"SEC 10. Freezing of Monetary Instrument or Property. -
"(A) Upon a verified ex parte petition by the AMLC and after 
determination that probable cause exists that no monetary 
instrument or property is in any way related to an unlawful activity 
as defined in Section 3(i) hereof, the Court of Appeals may, 
WITHIN TWENTY-FOUR (24) HOURS FROM THE FILING OF 
THE PETITION, issue a freeze order which shall be effective 
immediately, for a period of twenty (20) days. Within the twenty


1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8 
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20 
21 
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
(20)-day period, the Court of Appeals shall conduct a summary 
hearing with notice to the parties, to determine whether or not to 
modify or lift the freeze order, or extend its effectivity. The total 
period of the freeze order issued by the Court of Appeals under this 
provision shall not exceed six (6) months. This is without prejudice 
to an asset preservation order that the Regional Trial Court having 
jurisdiction over the appropriate anti-money laundering case or civil 
forfeiture case may issue on the same account depending upon the 
circumstances of the case, where the Court of Appeals will remand 
the case and its records: Provided, that if there is not case filed 
against a person whose account has been frozen within the period 
determined by the Court of Appeals, not exceeding six (6) months, 
the freeze order shall be deems ipso facto lifted; Provided, further, 
that this new rule shall not apply to pending cases in the courts. In 
any case, the court should act on the petition to freeze within 
twenty-four (24) hours from filing of the petition. If the application 
is filed a day before a no working day, the computation of the 
twenty-four (24)-hour period shall exclude the non-working days.
XXX
'(B) FOR PURPOSES OF IMPLEMENTING TARGETED FINANCIAL 
SANCTIONS, AS PROVIDED UNDER SECTION 7, PAR. 18, 
THE AMLC SHALL HAVE THE POWER TO ISSUE, EX PARTE, 
AN ORDER TO FREEZE WITHOUT DELAY.
THE FREEZE ORDER SHALL BE EFFECTIVE UNTIL THE 
BASIS FOR ITS ISSUANCE SHALL HAVE BEEN LIFTED. 
DURING THE EFFECTIVITY OF THE FREEZE ORDER, THE 
AGGRIEVED PARTY MAY, WITHIN TWENTY (20) DAYS 
FROM ISSUANCE, FILE WITH THE COURT OF APPEALS A 
PETITION TO DETERMINE THE BASIS OF THE FREEZE 
ORDER ACCORDING TO THE PRINCIPLE OF EFFECTIVE 
JUDICIAL PROTECTION.
THE AMLC, IF CIRCUMSTANCES WARRANTS, MAY 
INITIATE A CIVIL FOREFEITURE PROCEEDINGS TO 
PRESERVE THE ASSETS AND TO PROTECT IT FROM 
DISSIPATION.
NO COURT SHALL ISSUE A TEMPORARY RESTRAINING 
ORDER OR A WRIT OF INJUNCTION AGAINST THE FREEZE
10


1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8 
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20 
21 
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
40
41
42
ORDER, EXCEPT THE COURT OF APPEALS OR THE SUPREME 
COURT."
Section 8. Section 11 of the same Act is hereby, as amended, is hereby 
amended to read as follows:
"SEC. 11. Authority to Inquire into Bank Deposits. - Notwithstanding the 
provisions of Republic Act No. 1405, as amended; Republic Act No. 6426, as 
amended; Republic Act No. 8791; REPUBLIC ACT NO. 10173; and other 
laws, the AMLC may inquire into or examine any particular deposit or 
investment, including related accounts, with any banking institution or non­
bank financial institution upon order of [any competent court] THE COURT 
OF APPEALS based on an ex parte application in cases of violations of this 
Act, when IT HAS BEEN ESTABLISHED THAT THERE IS PROBABLE 
CAUSE THAT that the deposits or investments, including related accounts 
involved, are related to an unlawful activity as defined in Section 3(i) hereof 
or a money laundering offense under Section 4 hereof; except that no court 
order shall be required in cases involving activities defined in Section 3(i)(l), 
(2), (3), (4), (9), (12), (13), (14), (15), (17), (19), (28), (31), (32), (33), 
(34) and (41) hereof, and felonies or offenses of a nature similar [to those 
mentioned in Section 3(i)(l), (2) and (12),] THERETO which are punishable 
under the penal laws of other countries, [and terrorism and conspiracy to 
commit terrorism as defined and penalized under Republic Act No. 9372.]
The Court of Appeals shall act on the application to inquire into or 
examine any deposit or investment with any banking financial institution or 
non-bank financial institution within twenty-four (24) hours from filing of the 
application.
To ensure compliance with this Act AND ITS IMPLEMENTING RULES 
AND REGULATIONS, the Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas may, [in the course 
of a periodic or special examination, check the compliance of a covered 
person with the requirements of the AMLA and its implementing rules and 
regulations.] IN ACCORDANCE WITH ITS SUPERVISORY POWERS 
UNDER SECTION 4 OF REPUBLIC ACT NO. 8791, LIKEWISE 
RANDOMLY INQUIRE INTO OR EXAMINE ANY DEPOSIT, 
INVESTMENT, TRUST OR OTHER ACCOUNTS, AND ACCESS 
COVERED AND SUSPICIOUS TRANSACTION DATABASES WITH ANY 
BANKING INSTITUTION OR NON-BANK FINANCIAL INSTITUTION.
FOR PURPOSES OF THIS SECTION, 'RELATED ACCOUNTS' SHALL 
REFER TO ACCOUNTS, THE FUNDS AND SOURCES OF WHICH
11


1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8 
9
10
11
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20 
21 
22
23
24
25
26
27
28
29
30
31
32
33
34
35
36
37
38
39
ORIGINATED FROM AND/OR ARE MATERIALLY LINKED TO THE 
MONETARY INSTRUMENT(S) OR PROPERTY(IES) SUBJECT OF THE 
FREEZE ORDER(S).
A court order ex parte must first be obtained before the AMLC can inquire 
into these related accounts: Provided, that the procedure for the ex parte 
application of the ex parte court order for the principal accounts shall be the 
same with that of the related account.
The authority to inquire into or examine the main account and the related 
accounts shall comply with the requirements of Article III, Sections 2 and 3 
of the 1987 Constitution which are hereby incorporated by reference.
Section 9. Section 12 of the same Act is hereby, as amended, is hereby 
amended to read as follows:
"SEC. 12. Forfeiture Provisions. - xxx.
XXX
(D) RETENTION OF FORFEITED ASSETS WITH FINALITY. - THE 
AMLC SHALL RETAIN FIFTY PERCENT (50%) OF THE TOTAL 
ASSETS FORFEITED LESS THE COST OF LITIGATION, TAXES, 
LOCAL AND NATIONAL, AND OTHER RELATED EXPENSES, 
PROVIDED THAT IN NO CASE SHALL THE RETAINED ABOUNT 
EXCEED TWICE THE HIGHTER BUDGETARY APPROPRIATION 
FOR THE AMLC IN THE LAST TWO (2) YEARS.
THE REMAINING PORTION SHALL BE TURNED OVER TO THE 
NATIONAL TREASURY. THE RETAINED AMOUNT SHALL BE 
UTILIZED BY THE AMLC FOR MAINTENANCE, OPERATING 
EXPENSES ANTI-MONEY LAUNDERING OPERATIONS AND 
CAPACITY BUILDING.
xxx
Section 10. All sections and paragraphs in Republic Act No. 9160, as amended, 
shall be renumbered accordingly.
Section 11. Implementing Rules and Regulations. - The AMLC shall within 90 
(90) days from the effectivity of this Act issue the necessary rules and regulations.
12


1 
Section 12. Repealing Clause. - All laws, presidential decrees, letters of
2 
instructions, executive orders, rules and regulations insofar as they are inconsistent
3 
with this Act, are hereby repealed or amended as the case maybe.
4 
Section 13. Separability Clause - In case any provision of this Act or any
5 
portion thereof is declared unconstitutional by a competent court, other provisions
6 
shall not be affected thereby.
7 
Section 14. Effectivity Clause. - This Act shall take effect after its complete
8 
publication in at least three (3) newspapers of general circulation.
Approved,
13