Consultation · FCA · 26 Jul 2019
The Financial Conduct Authority confirms the retention of a minimum fee threshold for Professional Body Anti-Money-laundering Supervision (OPBAS) costs and sets the variable fee-rate for 2018/19 at £36.25 per supervised individual above the 6,000 threshold. The regulator is consulting on a proposed variable fee-rate of £44.36 per supervised individual for the 2019/20 financial year to recover total costs of £1.75 million. This consultation affects Professional Body Supervisors listed under the Money Laundering Regulations, with responses required by 25 September 2019 before final rates are set in December 2019.
Consultation Paper
CP19/24
July 2019
Recovering the costs of the Office for
Professional Body Anti-Money-laundering
Supervision (OPBAS): feedback on CP19/13 and consultation on fee-rate for 2019/20
CP19/24 Financial Conduct Authority
Recovering the costs of the Office for Professional Body Anti-Money-laundering Supervision (OPBAS):
feedback on CP19/13 and consultation on fee-rate for 2019/20 How to respond We are asking for comments on this Consultation Paper (CP) by 25 September 2019. You can send them to us using the form on our website at:
www.fca.org.uk/cp19-24-response-form
Or in writing to:
David Cheesman
Financial Conduct Authority
12 Endeavour Square London E20 1JN
Telephone:
0207 066 5406
Email:
cp19-24@fca.org.uk
Contents
1 Summary 3
2 Feedback on consultation 5
3 Consultation on fee-rate for 2019/20 11
4 Next steps 12
Annex 1
Question in this paper 13
Annex 2
Non-confidential respondents 14
Annex 3
Compatibility statement 15
Annex 4
Abbreviations 18
Appendix 1
Legal instrument
Appendix 2
Draft instrument
CP19/24
Chapter 1
Financial Conduct Authority
Recovering the costs of the Office for Professional Body Anti-Money-laundering Supervision (OPBAS):
feedback on CP19/13 and consultation on fee-rate for 2019/20 1 Summary Why we are consulting
1.1 We are feeding back on the outcome of our consultation in March 2019 on restructuring the levy to recover the costs of establishing and running the Office for
Professional Body Anti-Money Laundering Supervision (OPBAS).
1.2 The Government created OPBAS as part of a wider package of reforms to strengthen
the UK’s Anti-Money Laundering (AML) regime and based it within the FCA. OPBAS plays a key role in our AML and wider financial crime work and operates within our established executive management and governance structures.
1.3 We consulted on removing the minimum fee threshold from our model. We have
decided to maintain it. This means that professional body supervisors (PBSs) will pay a fixed fee of £5,000 on the first 6,000 individuals that they supervise, and a per head rate on the individuals they supervise above the threshold.
1.4 On that basis, we are setting the fee-rate for 2018/19 and consulting on the rate for
2019/20.
Who this this affects
1.5 This consultation paper (CP) will be relevant to:
CP19/24
Chapter 1
Financial Conduct Authority
Recovering the costs of the Office for Professional Body Anti-Money-laundering Supervision (OPBAS):
feedback on CP19/13 and consultation on fee-rate for 2019/20
1.10 We first consulted on the structure of fees to recover these costs in October 2017.
Since then, we have undertaken a data collection exercise, consulted on fee rates and, in March 2019, consulted further on the fees model. The March 2019 consultation was to determine whether to retain the threshold of supervised individuals below which fee-payers pay a flat-rate fee. This CP presents the outcome of that consultation. Summary of proposals
1.11 Chapter 2 summarises the consultation responses we received and presents our
feedback:
CP19/24
Chapter 2
Financial Conduct Authority
Recovering the costs of the Office for Professional Body Anti-Money-laundering Supervision (OPBAS):
feedback on CP19/13 and consultation on fee-rate for 2019/20 2 Feedback on consultation (Legal Instrument in Appendix 1)
2.1 In this chapter, we summarise the consultation and the responses we received, present
our feedback and confirm the fee-rate for 2018/19. The instrument made by the FCA Board on 25 July 2019 is in Appendix 1. Summary of the consultation
2.2 Fee-payers are grouped into fee-blocks. Each fee-block collates businesses with
similar activities, reducing the risk of cross-subsidy. PBSs are in a single fee-block, D2. Some of them are also in fee-block D1 as Designated Professional Bodies (DPBs). The costs and cost-recovery of fee-blocks D1 and D2 are ring-fenced, so there is no cross-subsidy.
2.3 Each fee-block uses a metric, known as a tariff measure, to distribute cost recovery
between the fee-payers. We engaged with PBSs during 2017 and consulted in October 2017 on the structure of OPBAS fees (https://www.fca.org.uk/publication/ consultation/cp17-35.pdf). After reviewing a wide range of alternatives, including income and professional membership, a count of individuals supervised under the MLRs emerged as the best available option.
2.4 Several PBSs advocated ‘beneficial owners, officers and managers’ (BOOMs) as a
statutorily defined measure which was already being used by many of them. In our policy statement (PS) published in April 2018 (https://www.fca.org.uk/publication/ policy/ps18-09.pdf), we incorporated this into our definition of supervised individuals for fee-block D2 in FEES Appendix 2 Annex 2 Part 1:
CP19/24
Chapter 2
Financial Conduct Authority
Recovering the costs of the Office for Professional Body Anti-Money-laundering Supervision (OPBAS):
feedback on CP19/13 and consultation on fee-rate for 2019/20 proposed that PBSs pay a minimum fee of £5,000. A variable fee is then payable on any individuals above that number.
2.8 We set the threshold at 6,000 because it left a clear demarcation between the
smallest of the large PBSs and the largest of the small ones, with no PBSs falling close to the margin.
2.9 We were working with reports of supervised individuals the PBSs had reported to
the Treasury, but we believed the figures were overstated because some PBSs had reported their total professional membership rather than the individuals supervised under the MLRs. We accordingly asked the PBSs to submit fresh data to us, using our definition, over the summer of 2018.
2.10 The tighter definition of supervised individuals reduced the population by 63%, from
217,884 reported to the Treasury to 79,731. The 6,000 threshold remained an objective demarcation point between large and small PBSs because it left a margin of 2,000 individuals above and below the line. This avoided any risk that we might appear to have exercised judgment in deciding which PBSs should fall on either side.
2.11 In October 2018, we confirmed the minimum fee and threshold and consulted on
the variable rate fee for 2018/19 (https://www.fca.org.uk/publication/consultation/ cp18-32.pdf).
2.12 Several of the respondents to the consultation challenged the model from which the
variable rate fee was calculated. They argued that the threshold distorted the pattern of cost recovery.
2.13 Only 3 of the 22 fee-payers paid variable rate fees and between them contributed 94%
of the costs of OPBAS. The other 19 PBSs paid only the flat rate of £5,000. Removing the threshold and the minimum fee resulted in a pattern of cost recovery where every PBS paid about £20 per head on all their supervised individuals.
2.14 We undertook a review of our previous consultations and concluded that:
CP19/24
Chapter 2
Financial Conduct Authority
Recovering the costs of the Office for Professional Body Anti-Money-laundering Supervision (OPBAS):
feedback on CP19/13 and consultation on fee-rate for 2019/20 demonstrating the impact on the viability of professional body supervisors and on the individuals they supervise. Costs of OPBAS
2.17 In CP19/13 we explained that the bulk of OPBAS running costs cover employment
costs, with an appropriate share of the costs associated with being part of the FCA. These include the costs of enforcement.
2.18 Some respondents asserted that it was difficult to comment on our fees proposals
without further information to demonstrate the efficient and economic use of OPBAS’s resources.
2.19 However, our consultation was on the mechanism for recovering the costs we incur
from year to year and not on the overall cost of OPBAS itself. The OPBAS team is
part of the FCA, which is audited by the National Audit Office and accountable to
Parliament.
2.20 We welcome discussion about the objectives and performance of OPBAS but do not
consider it appropriate to publish details of the internal governance and deployment of resources of individual FCA teams. Outcome of the consultation and feedback
2.21 We received 20 responses to CP 19/13. They are listed in Annex 2.
2.22 The main arguments in favour of removing the threshold were:
CP19/24
Chapter 2
Financial Conduct Authority
Recovering the costs of the Office for Professional Body Anti-Money-laundering Supervision (OPBAS):
feedback on CP19/13 and consultation on fee-rate for 2019/20
CP19/24
Chapter 2
Financial Conduct Authority
Recovering the costs of the Office for Professional Body Anti-Money-laundering Supervision (OPBAS):
feedback on CP19/13 and consultation on fee-rate for 2019/20 Our feedback
2.24 After extensive internal discussion of the arguments for and against retaining the
threshold, we have concluded that our original assessment in 2017 was correct and supervised individuals should not be treated equally.
2.25 We recognise that supervised individuals is not the ideal measure for distributing cost
recovery between fee-payers, but no alternative has been suggested to us which we are confident PBSs can report consistently.
2.26 In the absence of a more sensitive measure, excluding the first 6,000 supervised
individuals from the calculation is a simple, if unsophisticated, device to help counterbalance the potential over-representation of small firms in the population.
2.27 Three important general points came out of the consultation:
CP19/24
Chapter 2
Financial Conduct Authority
Recovering the costs of the Office for Professional Body Anti-Money-laundering Supervision (OPBAS):
feedback on CP19/13 and consultation on fee-rate for 2019/20 25 July 2019, sets the variable fee-rate payable on the number of individuals above the threshold.
2.30 When we consulted, our estimated budget for OPBAS was £1.4m, but we now have the
outturn figure for 2018/19, which is £1.2m. Adding in half of the set-up costs of £0.5m (£0.25m), the total to be recovered is £1.45m instead of £1.65m. Consequently, the fee-rate we have set is, at £36.25 per head, slightly lower than the rate consulted on in CP18/32.
2.31 We have not yet recovered any of the costs of OPBAS, so we intend to issue the
invoices for 2018/19 in August 2019.
CP19/24
Chapter 3
Financial Conduct Authority
Recovering the costs of the Office for Professional Body Anti-Money-laundering Supervision (OPBAS):
feedback on CP19/13 and consultation on fee-rate for 2019/20 3 Consultation on fee-rate for 2019/20 (Draft instrument in Appendix 2)
3.1 Now that we have confirmed the structure of OPBAS fees, with a minimum fee
threshold, we are consulting on the fee-rate for 2019/20.
3.2 The budget for OPBAS in 2019/20 is £1.5m. Therefore, with the balance of the set-up
costs (£0.25m), we will be recovering a total of £1.75m. On this basis, the fee-rate we are consulting on is £44.36 per head. We are asking for responses by 25 September 2019.
3.3 The FCA Board will finalise the fee-rate in December 2019 and invoices will be issued in
the first quarter of 2020.
3.4 In future, OPBAS fees will be determined as part of the annual consultation on feerates in the spring of each year. We will therefore consult on the 2020/21 OPBAS fees in
the spring 2020 CP.
3.5 Fee-payers who pay more than £50,000 in FCA fees in any year, pay the equivalent of
half of the previous year’s fees each April as an instalment towards the current year’s fee and the balance in September.
3.6 This means that PBSs which pay more than £50,000 in fees for 2019/20, will pay half of
the 2019/20 figure in April 2020 and the balance of the 2020/21 fee in September 2020 Q1: Do you have any comments on our proposed variable fee of £44.36 per supervised individual for 2019/20?
CP19/24
Chapter 4
Financial Conduct Authority
Recovering the costs of the Office for Professional Body Anti-Money-laundering Supervision (OPBAS):
feedback on CP19/13 and consultation on fee-rate for 2019/20 4 Next steps
4.1 The next steps are:
CP19/24
Annex 1
Financial Conduct Authority
Recovering the costs of the Office for Professional Body Anti-Money-laundering Supervision (OPBAS):
feedback on CP19/13 and consultation on fee-rate for 2019/20
Annex 1
Question in this paper
Q1: Do you have any comments on our proposed variable fee of £44.36 per supervised individual?
CP19/24
Annex 2
Financial Conduct Authority
Recovering the costs of the Office for Professional Body Anti-Money-laundering Supervision (OPBAS):
feedback on CP19/13 and consultation on fee-rate for 2019/20
Annex 2
Non-confidential respondents
Association of Accounting Technicians
Association of Chartered Certified Accountants Association of International Accountants Association of Taxation Technicians Bar of Northern Ireland Bar Standards Board Chartered Institute of Legal Executives Chartered Institute of Taxation Chartered Institute of Management Accountants CILEx Regulation Council for Licensed Conveyancers General Council of the Bar of England and Wales Institute of Chartered Accountants of England and Wales Institute of Chartered Accountants of Scotland Institute of Financial Accountants Law Society of England and Wales Law Society of Northern Ireland Law Society of Scotland Solicitors Regulation Authority
CP19/24
Annex 3
Financial Conduct Authority
Recovering the costs of the Office for Professional Body Anti-Money-laundering Supervision (OPBAS):
feedback on CP19/13 and consultation on fee-rate for 2019/20
Annex 3
Compatibility statement
Compliance with legal requirements
CP19/24
Annex 3
Financial Conduct Authority
Recovering the costs of the Office for Professional Body Anti-Money-laundering Supervision (OPBAS):
feedback on CP19/13 and consultation on fee-rate for 2019/20 ‘relevant markets’ are defined by s.1F of FSMA. In the rest of this annex, reference to objectives means both our strategic objective and operational objectives.
7. In preparing the proposal set out in this consultation, we have had regard to the
regulatory principles set out in s. 3B of FSMA. The most relevant regulatory principles are considered below. The need to use our resources in the most efficient and economic way
8. We have tried to keep the fees structure as simple as possible to avoid unnecessary
administrative costs. The fee we are consulting on will enable us to recover our costs. The principle that a burden or restriction should be proportionate to the benefits
9. The structure we have implemented is intended to distribute cost recovery between
the relevant fee-payers as fairly as possible.
The principle that we should exercise our functions as transparently as possible
10. In Chapter 2 we explained the thinking behind our decisions.
11. In formulating these proposals, we have had regard to the importance of minimising
the extent to which it is possible for a business carried on (i) by an authorised person or (ii) in contravention of the general prohibition, to be used for a purpose connected with financial crime (as required by s. 1B(5)(b) of FSMA). The levy we propose will assure the operation of OPBAS, whose remit is to make sure the MLRs are effectively implemented. Expected effect on mutual societies
12. We do not believe our consultation proposal will have a direct impact on mutual
societies.
Compatibility with the duty to promote effective competition in the interests of consumers
13. Our fees enable us to fund our activities, including our duty to promote effective
competition in the interests of consumers. We have tried to minimise distortion to competition by basing the fees on the number of persons supervised under the MLRs.
CP19/24
Annex 3
Financial Conduct Authority
Recovering the costs of the Office for Professional Body Anti-Money-laundering Supervision (OPBAS):
feedback on CP19/13 and consultation on fee-rate for 2019/20 We can then spread cost recovery as fairly as possible across all fee-payers and charge lower fees to the smaller PBSs which supervise fewer persons. Equality and diversity
14. We are required under the Equality Act 2010 to ‘have due regard’ to the need to
eliminate discrimination and to promote equality of opportunity in carrying out our policies, services and functions. We believe the policy proposals in this CP do not raise equality or diversity questions but we welcome comments on any equality and diversity issues you believe may arise.
CP19/24
Annex 4
Financial Conduct Authority
Recovering the costs of the Office for Professional Body Anti-Money-laundering Supervision (OPBAS):
feedback on CP19/13 and consultation on fee-rate for 2019/20
Annex 4
Abbreviations
AFR Annual funding requirement
AML Anti-money laundering
BOOMs Beneficial owners, officers and managers, as defined at Regulation 3 of the MLRs CP Consultation Paper DPB Designated Professional Body (designated by order under s 326(1) of FSMA FCA Financial Conduct Authority FEES FEES Manual FSMA Financial Services and Markets Act 2000 MLRs Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017 (these replace the Money Laundering Regulations 2007) OPBAS Office for Professional Body Anti-Money Laundering Supervision OPBAS Regulations Oversight of Professional Body Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Terrorist Financing Supervision Regulations 2017 PS Policy statement We have developed the policy in this Consultation Paper in the context of the existing UK and EU regulatory framework. The Government has made clear that it will continue to implement and apply EU law until the UK has left the EU. We will keep the proposals under review to assess whether any amendments may be required in the event of changes in the UK regulatory framework in the future. We make all responses to formal consultation available for public inspection unless the respondent requests otherwise. We will not regard a standard confidentiality statement in an email message as a request for non-disclosure. Despite this, we may be asked to disclose a confidential response under the Freedom of Information Act 2000. We may consult you if we receive such a request. Any decision we make not to disclose the response is reviewable by the Information Commissioner and the Information Rights Tribunal. All our publications are available to download from www.fca.org.uk. If you would like to receive this paper in an alternative format, please call 020 7066 7948 or email: publications_graphics@fca.org.uk or write to: Editorial and Digital team, Financial Conduct Authority, 12 Endeavour Square, London E20 1JN
CP19/24
Appendix 1
Financial Conduct Authority
Recovering the costs of the Office for Professional Body Anti-Money-laundering Supervision (OPBAS):
feedback on CP19/13 and consultation on fee-rate for 2019/20
Appendix 1
Legal instrument
FCA 2019/82
FEES (OFFICE FOR PROFESSIONAL BODY ANTI-MONEY LAUNDERING SUPERVISION) (No 2) INSTRUMENT 2019/20 Powers exercised A. The Financial Conduct Authority makes this instrument in the exercise of:
(1) the power under Regulation 27 (costs of supervision) of the Oversight of Professional Body Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Terrorist Financing Supervision Regulations 2017; and (2) the power under Regulation 102 of the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017. Commencement B. This instrument comes into force on 26 July 2019. Amendments to the Handbook
C. The Fees manual (FEES) is amended in accordance with the Annex to this instrument.
Notes
D. In the Annex to this instrument, the “note” (indicated by “Note:”) is included for the convenience of the reader and does not form part of the legislative text. Citation E. This instrument may be cited as the Fees (Office for Professional Body Anti-Money Laundering Supervision) (No 2) Instrument 2019. By order of the Board 25 July 2019
FCA 2019/82
Annex
Amendments to the Fees manual (FEES)
In this Annex, underlining indicates new text and striking through indicates deleted text. App 2
Annex 2
Periodic fees imposed under Regulation 27 of the OPBAS Regulations:
tariff base, review date, tariff rates
…
Part 3
This table sets out the tariff rates applicable to professional body supervisors. Fee payable in relation to 2018/2019 Amount payable (£) … … Variable fee, payable by professional body supervisors where the number of supervised individuals is 6,000 or more. £45.49 36.25 multiplied by the total number of supervised individuals in excess of the threshold of 6,000. [See Note] [Note: reference to “the number of supervised individuals” is to those supervised individuals calculated in accordance with Part 1.]
CP19/24
Appendix 2
Financial Conduct Authority
Recovering the costs of the Office for Professional Body Anti-Money-laundering Supervision (OPBAS):
feedback on CP19/13 and consultation on fee-rate for 2019/20
Appendix 2
Draft instrument
FCA 2019/XX
FEES (OFFICE FOR PROFESSIONAL BODY ANTI-MONEY LAUNDERING SUPERVISION) (No [3]) INSTRUMENT 2019/20 Powers exercised A. The Financial Conduct Authority makes this instrument in the exercise of:
(1) the power under Regulation 27 (costs of supervision) of the Oversight of Professional Body Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Terrorist Financing Supervision Regulations 2017; and (2) the power under Regulation 102 of the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017. Commencement B. This instrument comes into force on [date]. Amendments to the Handbook
C. The Fees manual (FEES) is amended in accordance with the Annex to this instrument.
Notes
D. In the Annex to this instrument, the “note” (indicated by “Note:”) is included for the convenience of the reader and does not form part of the legislative text. Citation E. This instrument may be cited as the Fees (Office for Professional Body Anti-Money Laundering Supervision) (No [3]) Instrument 2019. By order of the Board [date]
FCA 2019/XX
Annex
Amendments to the Fees manual (FEES)
In this Annex, underlining indicates new text and striking through indicates deleted text. App 2
Annex 2
Periodic fees imposed under Regulation 27 of the OPBAS Regulations:
tariff base, review date, tariff rates
…
Part 3
This table sets out the tariff rates applicable to professional body supervisors. Fee payable in relation to 2019/2020 Amount payable … … Variable fee, payable by professional body supervisors where the number of supervised individuals is 6,000 or more. £36.25 44.36 multiplied by the total number of supervised individuals in excess of the threshold of 6,000. [See Note] [Note: reference to “the number of supervised individuals” is to those supervised individuals calculated in accordance with Part 1.]
© Financial Conduct Authority 2019
12 Endeavour Square London E20 1JN
Telephone: +44 (0)20 7066 1000
Website: www.fca.org.uk
All rights reserved
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The documents this one cites, and the documents that cite it.
“Compliance with legal requirements 1. Although OPBAS fees will not be charged under the FSMA regime, we must make sure our proposals are compatible with the FCA’s wider statutory duties, so this annex explains our reasons for concluding th…”
“The Oversight of Professional Body Anti-Money Laundering and Counter Terrorist Financing Supervision Regulations 2018 (the OPBAS Regulations) give us the power to recover the costs of OPBAS’s supervisory activities from PBSs.”
“PBSs listed in Schedule 1 of the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017 (the MLRs)”
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