ASEAN Regulatory Brief: Money Laundering Regulations in Thailand, Philippine Monetary Allowances, and Private Jets in Indonesia

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Thailand: New KYC Guidelines Issued

Thailand’s central Bank of Thailand (BOT) has introduced new regulations to ease the Know Your Customer (KYC) process using the electronic process (e-KYC) to open accounts on deposit acceptance of funds accepted from the public. Financial institutions globally are increasingly being required to comply with KYC guidelines under the anti-money laundering law (AML). As per the BOT Notification No. SorNOrSor. 7/2559 the following guidelines have been issued.

  • E-KYC procedures must have the same standards as KYC procedures and available only for individual customers using electronic means such as computers, mobile phones, other electronic devices etc. Financial institutions however, must get prior approval from the BOT.
  • Electronic signatures are acceptable.
  • Verification of customers must be done using ID cards or a smart card reader
  • Financial institutions must retain all information including KYC documents or their copies as per the AML law.

The regulation went into effect in August.

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Philippines: Travelers allowed to bring up to US$ 1,000 into the Country

Travelers going in and out of the country will be allowed to bring as much as US$1,043 (PHP 50,000) worth of legal tenders from September as per the central Bangko Sentral ng Pilipinas (BSP). The directive was issued by BSP officials and amended the rules on cross-border transfer of local currency in the form of Circular 922. Amounts more than this will require prior authorization from the BSP. The limit also applies to electronic transfers.

The move goes with the BSP’s liberalization measures to bring its citizens back to the banking system. Apart from this, the BSP also increased the limit of allowing Philippine residents to purchase up to US$500,000 in foreign exchange compared to US$120,000 previously. The BSP has also been adopting measures to ease foreign exchange and document requirements on sending money abroad in a bid to attract depositors back to the banks.

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Indonesia: Private Jets allowed in Indonesian Airspace

Indonesia’s Ministry of Transport has signed a new regulation that will allow non-commercial foreign-owned private jets to fly from more than two airports and thus domestically within the country in a bid to promote tourism and investment. The regulation is being processed by the Ministry of Law and Human Rights and is expected to be in effect soon. Indonesian private jet owners – to get around the law – typically register their planes in foreign countries where getting financing and licenses are easy, as well as getting experienced pilots.

Transport officials have stated that the under the new regulation, private jets will need security clearance, flight approval, diplomatic clearance and a special permit from the ministry to fly inside Indonesian airspace. Officials also stated that they will launch a special website for flight permits making the process easier. Previously, private jets could only go to international destinations and were allowed to operate from just one or two Indonesian airports. Studies have shown that if the government relaxes flight restrictions, the Indonesian business jet market could be the largest in Southeast Asia by 2019, overtaking Singapore.


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