Law Nº 12/10, of July 9, 2010, Ist Series, DR. Nº 128
Law To Combat Money Laundering & Financing Of Terrorism

NATIONAL ASSEMBLY

It has become imperative to establish measures of a preventive and severe nature to combat the illicit proceeds gained through money laundering and financing terrorism, since this practice is a global scourge primarily affecting developing societies, whose modus operandi, in light of its very nature, is shrouded in secrecy, with its true extent unknown.

Offenders frequently utilize various countries to hide their illicit proceeds, taking advantage of the differences existing in their respective legal systems and, sometimes, of difficulties linked to international coordination and cooperation.

Since no reliable estimates exist as to the magnitude of the issue of money laundering and of financing terrorism on a global scale, and in order to prevent its spread to our country, the consequences of which are unimaginable.

The National Assembly approves, by mandate of the people, in accordance with paragraph b) of article 161 of the Constitution of the Republic of Angola, the following:

Basic Private Investment Law

1. This law establishes measures of a preventive and severe nature to combat the crimes of money laundering and of financing terrorism.
2. Money laundering and the financing of terrorism are prohibited, provided for and punished, within the framework of this law and applicable penal legislation.

For the purposes of this law the following shall be understood to mean:

1. Entities concerned - financial and non-financial entities;
2. Business relationship - relationship of commercial or professional nature between entities concerned and their customers which, at the time of its actually being established, is anticipated as becoming, or already is, a lasting one;
3. Occasional Transaction - any transaction performed by the entities concerned outside the scope of an established business relationship;
4. Actual beneficiary – an entity on behalf of which a transaction or activity is carried out or which ultimately owns or controls the customer;
5. Politically exposed persons – individuals who hold, or have held, up to one year previously, positions of a political or public nature, as well as their close family members and people who are clearly recognized as having close links of a corporate or commercial nature with them;
6. Fake bank - a credit institution incorporated in a State or jurisdiction, where it has no physical presence involving administration and management, and which does not belong to a regulated financial group;
7. Corporate service providers - other corporate entities and centers of collective interests without a legal personality;
8. Financial Information Unit - the national central unit empowered to receive, analyze and pass on information on suspected money laundering or financing of terrorist operations; primarily, the National Bank of Angola [central bank], Angola’s Securities and Exchange Commission and the National Directorate of Investigation and Inspection of Economic Activities of the General Command of the National Police.

1. This law applies to credit institutions, financial companies, insurance companies, pension fund managers, stock exchanges, casinos, foreign exchange bureaus and loan companies, payment issuance and management services, companies managing individual and corporate assets headquartered in Angolan territory, as well as their respective branches, agencies, affiliates or other forms of representation, and other institutions whose activity entails the provision of services, i.e. certified public accountants, accountants, auditors, notaries public, registrars, lawyers, solicitors and other independent professionals who work on behalf of a customer in a broad spectrum of areas or in operations in other circumstances.
2. This application includes entities operating public mail services, insofar as they provide financial services.

The entities concerned are legally bound, in the performance of their respective activities, to comply with the following general obligations:

1. Identification obligation;
2. Due diligence obligation;
3. Refusal obligation;
4. Legal hold obligation;
5. Communication obligation;
6. Abstention obligation;
7. Cooperation obligation;
8. Secrecy obligation;
9. Control obligation;
10. Training obligation.

1. The entities concerned must demand identification from customers or of their legal representatives, by the presentation of a valid document of proof whenever:
1. Setting up business relationships;
2. Opening accounts;
3. Executing occasional transactions of amounts in national currency equal to or more than the equivalent of USD 15,000;
4. Should the overall amount not be known at the time of initiating the operation, the entity concerned must proceed with identification, starting from the time that it knows the value involved and that such goes beyond the maximum imposed in the preceding paragraph;
5. Suspicions are aroused that operations, irrespective of their value, appear to be related to the crimes of money laundering or of financing terrorism, taking into account, in particular, the nature, complexity and irregularity of the operation;
6. Doubts exist as to the authenticity or conformity of the identification data of customers.
2. In the case of individuals, verification of identity must be performed by the presentation of a valid document of proof bearing a photograph, which shows full name, date of birth and nationality.
3. When customers are corporate entities, identification is made by the presentation of the original or an authenticated photocopy of their articles of incorporation or valid license, issued by the relevant entity, by their corporate ID card or commercial company registration certificate.
4. In the case of a corporate entity being non-resident in national territory, identification must be made with an equivalent document.

1. Verification of a customer's identity and of their representatives and, when such is the case, that of the actual beneficiary, must take place at the time when the business relationship is established or before performing any occasional transaction.
2. Without prejudice to that determined in the preceding number, when the risk of money laundering or of financing terrorism is fairly low, verification of the identity provided for in the preceding number may be checked after the business relationship has been initiated, with such procedures having to be completed in the shortest possible period.

Aside from the identification of customers, their representatives and beneficiaries, the entities concerned must:

1. Obtain information as to the purpose and intended nature of the business relationship;
2. Obtain information, when the customer's risk profile or the operation’s characteristics so justify, as to the origin and destination of the funds being transacted within the scope of a business relationship or in performing an occasional transaction;
3. Maintain ongoing monitoring of the business relationship, in order to ensure that such operations are adequate to the customer's activities and risk profile;
4. Maintain information, obtained during the course of the business relationship, up-to-date.

1. In compliance with the identification and due diligence obligations, provided for in articles 5 and 7, the entities concerned may adjust the nature and extent of the verification procedures and due diligence measures in relation to the risk associated to the type of customer, business relationship, product, transaction, and the origin or destination of funds.
2. The entities concerned must be capable of demonstrating the adequacy of the procedures adopted, in accordance with the preceding number, whenever requested to do so by the relevant oversight or inspection authority.

1. Except when suspicions of money laundering or of financing terrorism exist, the entities concerned are released from compliance with the obligations as set out in articles 5 and 7, in the following situations:
1. When the customer is the State or an entity incorporated under public law, of any nature, belonging to the central, provincial or local administration;
2. When the customer is a public authority or organization subject to transparent accounting practices and inspection;
3. When the customer is the entity providing mail services.
2. In the cases provided for in the preceding number, the entities concerned must, in any case, gather enough information to verify that the customer falls into one of the categories or professions mentioned, as well as monitoring the business relationship in order to detect complex transactions or those of an abnormally high value that do not appear to have an economic objective or lawful purpose.

1. Without prejudice to compliance with that determined in articles 5 and 7, the entities concerned must apply enhanced due diligence measures to customers and operations that, by their very nature or characteristics, may reveal a greater risk of money laundering or of financing terrorism.
2. Enhanced due diligence measures are always applicable to operations carried out remotely and especially those that may favor anonymity, operations performed with politically exposed persons who live outside national territory, correspondent banking operations established with credit institutions in other countries, and to any other operations designated by the oversight or inspection authorities of the respective sector, provided they are legally qualified for the purpose.
3. Without prejudice to regulations issued by the relevant authorities, in those cases in which the operation takes place without the customer or their representative being physically present, the verification of identity may be complemented by one of the following means:
1. Other documents or information considered adequate to verify or certify data supplied by customers, i.e., by a financial entity;
2. Realization of first payment regarding operation by way of an account open in customer’s name at a credit institution.
4. As to business relationships or occasional transactions with politically exposed persons resident outside national territory, the entities concerned must:
1. Have adequate procedures based on risk, to determine whether a customer may be considered a politically exposed person;
2. Obtain authorization from immediate hierarchy before setting up business relationships with such customers;
3. Take the necessary measures to determine the origin of assets and funds involved in business relationships or occasional transactions;
5. The system provided for in the preceding number must continue to be applied to anyone who, having ceased to be in the capacity of a politically exposed person, continues to represent an added risk of money laundering or of financing terrorism, due to their profile or the nature of the operations carried out.

1. The entities concerned must refuse to perform any operations whenever:
1. The respective identification or identification of persons on whose behalf the representatives are acting is not provided;
2. The information provided for in article 7, as to the structure of ownership and control of customer, nature, and purpose of the business relationship and origin and destination of funds, is not supplied.
2. Whenever the refusal provided for in the preceding number occurs, the entities concerned must analyze the circumstances that determined same and, should they suspect that the situation may be related to the committing of a money laundering or financing of terrorism crime, they must make the communications provided for in article 14 and consider ending the business relationship.

1. An operation that, by its very nature, complexity, volume, habitual character, lack of economic justification, or likelihood of coming within the framework of a legal type of crime, constitutes an objective criterion on which to base suspicion.
2. Once the circumstances described in the preceding number have been ascertained, the entities concerned must seek information from the customer as to the origin and destination of the funds.

It is mandatory that the identification documents be held for a period of 10 years, counting from the date of the closing of the accounts of the respective customers or termination of the established contractual relationship, on the part of the entities concerned.

1. The entities concerned must immediately inform, on their own initiative, the relevant entity, which shall contact the National Bank of Angola, whenever they know, suspect, or have sufficient reason to suspect that an operation has occurred, is underway, or is an attempt at committing what is liable to be a money laundering or financing of terrorism crime.
2. The information supplied, in accordance with the preceding number may only be used in criminal proceedings, and under no circumstances whatsoever may the identity of whomever supplied same be revealed.

1. Whenever it is ascertained that a certain operation shows grounds for suspicion and is liable to constitute a crime, aside from the obligation arising out of article 5, the entities concerned must abstain from performing any operations related to the customer's instructions and await the decision, communicated in writing, by the National Bank of Angola, in accordance with the following numbers, with the latter authority being able to determine the suspension of its respective execution.
2. The National Bank of Angola decision must be communicated within a maximum period of 48 hours, at the end of which time the operation must be executed or, in the reverse case, it must be communicated to the National Directorate of Investigation and Inspection of Economic Activities of the General Command of the National Police.
3. The suspended operation may, however, be carried out if the suspension order has not been confirmed by the National Bank of Angola, or has not been communicated to the National Directorate of Investigation and Inspection of Economic Activities of the General Command of the National Police, within the maximum period of 48 hours, subsequent to the communication referred to in Nº 1 of this article.

1. The entities concerned must provide cooperation with the National Bank of Angola and the National Directorate of Investigation and Inspection of Economic Activities of the General Command of the National Police, when requested by them to do so, supplying them with information regarding certain operations, carried out by customers or the presentation of documents related to certain operations.
2. After initiating the formal investigation proceedings, the entities concerned must cooperate with the relevant law enforcement and judicial authorities.

1. The entities concerned and the members of their respective governing bodies, or those who exercise senior management or other executive positions, their employees, agents and others who provide them with services, be they permanent, temporary, or occasional, cannot reveal, to the customer or third parties, that they have transmitted the legally required communications or that a criminal investigation is underway.
2. It does not constitute a violation of compliance with the obligations, provided for in this law, to disclose, as stipulated in the preceding number, the legally required information to the National Bank of Angola or the National Directorate of Investigation and Inspection of Economic Activities of the General Command of the National Police, including professional organizations regulating the activities or professions subject to this law.

Information provided in good faith by the entities concerned in compliance with the obligations enumerated does not constitute a violation of any secrecy obligation, imposed by way of legislative, regulatory or contractual regulations, nor does it implicate, on the part of those supplying same, any type of liability whatsoever. All those entities concerned with headquarters in Angolan territory, including respective affiliates, branches, agencies, or any other form of commercial representation must have internal organization systems which provide them with the capability to comply, at any given time, with the obligations provided for in this law. All the entities concerned must provide adequate training for their employees and executives, aimed at compliance with the obligations imposed by this law. Financial entities are subject to the obligations set out in article 4, with the stipulations provided for in the following articles.

1. Financial entities, with the exclusion of foreign-exchange agencies and payment institutions, are authorized to permit the execution of the identification and due diligence obligations in relation to customers by a third entity, in accordance with the regulations of the respective oversight authorities.
2. Financial entities having recourse to third parties to ensure compliance with the obligations provided for in the preceding number shall be held liable for the exact execution of those obligations, as though they were performing them direct, and must have immediate access to the information relating to the respective execution.

1. Financial entities, which are credit institutions, must also apply enhanced due diligence measures to cross-border correspondent banking relationships established with institutions in third countries.
2. For the purposes of the preceding number, credit institutions must obtain sufficient information regarding the correspondent institution, in order to understand the nature of its activity, evaluate its internal control procedures as regards the prevention of money laundering and the financing of terrorism, as well as to appraise, based on publicly available information, its reputation, and the characteristics of its respective oversight.
3. The correspondent relationship must be authorized by the immediate hierarchy and the respective responsibilities must be drawn up in writing.
4. In the case of the correspondent relationship involving accounts corresponding to transfers, the credit institution must confirm that the identity of the customer who has direct access to the account has been ascertained, and that the due diligence obligation is observed on the part of the counterpart institution, while also ensuring that those details can be supplied, upon its request.

In the case of operations revealing a special money laundering or financing of terrorism risk, i.e., when they are linked to a certain country or jurisdiction subject to additional anti-crime measurements, the oversight authorities for the respective sector may stipulate the obligation of an immediate communication of those operations to the relevant entities that communicate with the National Bank of Angola, when the amount is higher than, in national currency, the equivalent of USD 5,000. Financial entities must possess systems and instruments that can determine whether they maintain or have maintained, in the last five years, business relationships with a certain individual or corporate entity and the nature of those relationships, thereby enabling them to respond, promptly and in detail, to requests for information presented by the official entities authorized to act in this matter and by the relevant judicial authorities.

1. Financial entities, in relation to branches or affiliates they have established in third countries, and in which they have a majority holding, must:
1. Apply measures equivalent to those provided for in this law as regards identification, due diligence, legal hold and training obligations;
2. Communicate policies and internal procedures defined in compliance with that determined in article 20, which are shown to be applicable within the scope of the activity of branches and affiliates.
2. In cases where the third country’s legislation does not permit the application of the measures provided for in paragraph a) of the preceding number, financial entities must inform the respective oversight authorities of this fact and put supplementary measures in place aimed at preventing the risk of money laundering and the financing of terrorism.

1. Credit institutions are prohibited from setting up correspondent relationships with "fake banks".
2. Credit institutions must also endeavor to avoid establishing correspondent relationships with other credit institutions that are known to allow their accounts to be used by fake banks.
3. As soon as institutions become aware that they are maintaining a correspondent relationship with the entities referred to in the preceding numbers they must terminate same.

Non-financial entities are subject to the obligations set out in article 4, with the stipulations provided for in the following articles and in the rules and regulations issued by the National Bank of Angola.

1. In compliance with the communication obligation, provided for in Nº 1 of article 14, freelance professionals shall communicate suspicious operations to the highest body of the association of which they are a member, whether it be an order or have some other designation, respectively, with it being incumbent on such entities to communicate, promptly and without filtering, to the financial information unit and the Office of the General Attorney of the Republic, without prejudice to that determined in the following number.
2. When involving lawyers or other freelance professionals, and with the operations referred to in Nº 1 of article 12 being at issue, any information obtained in the context of assessing a client's legal situation, within the scope of providing legal advice, in the exercise of their mission to defend or represent a client in legal proceedings, or regarding legal proceedings, including advice on instigating or avoiding proceedings, as well as information obtained before, during or subsequent to proceedings, is not subject to the communication obligation.
3. That provided for in the preceding numbers also applies to the exercise by lawyers and other freelance professionals of the abstention and cooperation obligations, as soon as assistance is requested of them by the judicial authority, to communicate same to the professional order or association in which they are enrolled, supplying the latter with the information requested, for the purpose provided for in Nº 1 of this article.

1. Casino gaming concessionaires are subject to the following obligations to:
1. Identify visitors and verify their identity on entering gaming rooms or when they acquire or exchange gaming chips or conventional symbols utilizable for playing, of an amount, in national currency, equal to or higher than the equivalent of USD 2,000;
2. Only issue their checks, in gaming rooms, in exchange for chips or conventional symbols, to the order of identified visitors who have acquired them through a bank card or non-utilized checks and, for the overall sum of those acquisitions, in an amount corresponding to the maximum;
3. Only issue their checks, in gaming rooms and from automatic machines, to pay out prizes, to the order of previously identified prizewinning players, arising out of combinations of payment plans from machines or accumulated prize systems.
2. The identity of visitors referred to in paragraphs a) and b) of Nº 1 must always be recorded.
3. The checks referred to in paragraphs b) and c) of Nº 1 must, mandatorily, be nominative and crossed, indicating a prohibitive endorsement clause.
4. The communications to be made, in accordance with this law, must be performed by the concessionary company’s management.

In the event of the non-financial entity concerned being an individual who exercises their professional activity in the capacity of an employee of a corporate entity, the training obligation provided for in article 20 is incumbent on the corporate entity. Inspection of compliance with the obligations provided for in this law is incumbent on the National Bank of Angola, National Directorate of Investigation and Inspection of Economic Activities of the General Command of the National Police and relevant law enforcement and judicial authorities, in accordance with this law. Within the scope of its respective powers, it is incumbent on the National Bank of Angola to:

1. Regulate the conditions of exercise, information and explanation obligations, as well as the instruments, mechanisms and application of formalities required for the effective execution of the obligations provided for in this law, always abiding by the principles of legality, necessity, adequacy and proportionality;
2. Oversee compliance with the rules and regulations contained in this law;
3. Instigate and instruct respective infringement proceedings and, according to case, apply or propose the application of sanctions.

Whenever, in the exercise of their functions, the oversight authorities of financial entities and those of inspection of non-financial entities become aware of or suspect acts liable to lead to the committing of the crimes of money laundering or of financing of terrorism they must, in the event that the communication has not yet been made, promptly contact the National Bank of Angola. In order to perform their powers, to the fullest extent, for the prevention of money laundering and the financing of terrorism, the relevant entity must have timely access to the financial, administrative, judicial and law enforcement information, which shall be subject to that determined in article 16. It is incumbent on the National Bank of Angola, within the scope of its legal powers and responsibilities, to issue alerts and disclose up-to-date information on known trends and practices, for the purpose of preventing money laundering and the financing of terrorism. The financial information unit of the National Bank of Angola must provide feedback to the entities concerned, whether it be the National Bank of Angola, or the National Directorate of Investigation and Inspection of Economic Activities of the General Command of the National Police, on the forwarding and result of suspicious money laundering and financing of terrorism communications, sent by same.

1. It is incumbent on the National Bank of Angola’s financial information unit to prepare and maintain statistical data relating to the number of suspicious transactions communicated and the forwarding and result of such communications.
2. The judicial and law enforcement authorities must, on an annual basis, send statistical data to the National Bank of Angola’s financial information unit, regarding money laundering and the financing of terrorism, i.e., the number of cases investigated, persons accused in court proceedings, persons convicted, and the amount of assets frozen, seized or declared lost in favor of the State.
3. It is incumbent on the National Bank of Angola’s financial information unit to publish statistical data gathered on the prevention of money laundering and the financing of terrorism.

Whatsoever be the nationality of the agent, that determined in this chapter is applicable to:

1. Acts committed within Angolan territory;
2. Acts committed outside national territory for which the entities referred to in article 3 are accountable, acting through branches or services provided, as well as persons who, in relation to such entities, are in one of the situations provided for in Nº 2 of the following article.

1. The following may be held accountable for the committing of the infringements to which this chapter refers:
1. Financial entities;
2. Non-financial entities.
2. Corporate entities shall be held accountable for infringements when the acts have been committed either in their name or on their account in the exercise of their respective functions, by members of the governing bodies, agents, representatives, workers or any other permanent or occasional employees.
3. The liability of a corporate entity shall not preclude the individual accountability of the respective agents.
4. Should the circumstances of the legal type of the offense demand certain personal details and these are only to be encountered in the corporate entity, or demand that the agent commits the act in its interest, with same having acted in the interest of a third party, such shall not prevent agents from being held accountable individually.
5. The legal invalidity and inefficacy of the acts on which the relationship is based between the individual agent and the corporate entity shall not prevent that which is provided for in the preceding numbers from being applied.

Negligence is always punishable, with, in that case, the maximum and minimum limits of the fine being reduced by half.

1. Whenever the infringement arises out of the omission of an obligation, the application of the sanction and payment of the fine shall not release the offender from its execution, if such is still possible.
2. The offender may be subject to an injunction to comply with the omitted obligation.

1. The statute of limitations for the procedure relating to the infringements provided for in this chapter is five years counting from the date of same being committed.
2. The statute of limitations for fines and additional sanctions is five years, counting from the date on which the administrative decision becomes definitive or the date on which the final verdict has been handed down.

Irrespective of the phase at which it becomes definitive or the verdict is handed down, the proceeds from fines revert to the favor of the National Bank of Angola.

1. Corporate entities are jointly liable for the payment of fines and costs of which their managers, agents, representatives, or employees are convicted for committing punishable offenses, in accordance with this law.
2. Those holding office on the management bodies of corporate entities who, having been in a position to do so, have not opposed the committing of the offense are liable, individually and subsidiarily, for the payment of the fine and costs to which they are condemned, even if same, at the date of the said conviction, have been dissolved or gone into liquidation.

The following typical unlawful acts constitute infringements:

1. Noncompliance with the identification and verification obligations as to the identity of customers and their representatives;
2. Performing verification procedures on the identity of customers and their representatives and failing to observe the rules governing the time at which such must take place;
3. Permitting debit or credit transactions in deposit bank accounts, the availability of payment instruments on those accounts or making changes in the ownership of same, when not preceded by verification of the customer's identity;
4. Inobservance of procedures and due diligence measures;
5. Inadequacy of nature and extent of identity verification procedures and due diligence measures vis-à-vis degree of risk existing, as well as failing to demonstrate such adequacy to the relevant authorities;
6. Adoption of simplified procedures in complying with identification and due diligence obligations, with inobservance of terms and conditions;
7. Total or partial omission of enhanced due diligence measures for customers and operations likely to reveal a greater risk of money laundering or of financing terrorism, and for cross-border correspondent banking relationships established with institutions in third countries;
8. Noncompliance with refusal obligation to perform operations in bank accounts, establish business relationships or the realization of occasional transactions when respective details of identification or information are not made available;
9. Failure to perform analysis vis-à-vis circumstances determining the refusal of an operation, a business relationship or an occasional transaction and respective immediate communication;
10. Failure to maintain legal hold of originals, copies, references or other durable resources demonstrating the carrying out of identification and due diligence obligations and operations performed;
11. Noncompliance with obligation to examine, with special care and attention, behavior, activities or operations which are likely to be related to money laundering or the financing of terrorism;
12. Noncompliance with obligations involving records, filing and availability of results of examination of suspicious behavior, activities or operations;
13. Failure to send communication to relevant entities immediately;
14. Noncompliance with obligation to abstain from execution of suspicious operations and with respective obligation to immediately provide information to the National Bank of Angola;
15. Disregard for suspension orders regarding the execution of suspicious operations and the execution of such operations, after confirmation of suspension order, from the National Bank of Angola;
16. Not cooperating promptly with the National Bank of Angola and the National Directorate of Investigation and Inspection of Economic Activities of the General Command of the National Police, as well as with law enforcement and judicial authorities, the judicial authority responsible for directing inquiry or with relevant inspection authorities for compliance with obligations enshrined in this law;
17. Revelation, to customers or third parties, of the transmission of communications to the National Bank of Angola and the National Directorate of Investigation and Inspection of Economic Activities of the General Command of the National Police, or of an imminent criminal investigation;
18. Lack of definition and application of policies and internal control procedures;
19. Failure to adopt measures, as well as informative and training programs, vis-à-vis the prevention of money laundering and the financing of terrorism;
20. Recourse to third-party entities to perform identification and due diligence obligations.

The infringements provided for in the preceding article are punishable, in accordance with the following terms:

1. When the infringement is committed within the scope of a financial entity’s activity:
1. with a fine amounting, in national currency, to the equivalent of between USD 25,000 and USD 2,500,000, should the agent be a corporate entity;
2. with a fine amounting, in national currency, to the equivalent of between USD 12,500 and USD 1,250,000, should the agent be an individual;
2. When the infringement is committed within the scope of a non-financial entity’s activity:
1. with a fine amounting, in national currency, to the equivalent of between USD 5,000 and USD 500,000, should the agent be a corporate entity;
2. with a fine amounting, in national currency, to the equivalent of between USD 2,500 and USD 250,000, should the agent be an individual.

The following additional sanctions, together with fines, may be applied, to those responsible for any of the infringements provided for, in relation to the gravity of the offense and of the agent's culpability:

1. Prohibition, for a period of up to three years, from the exercise of the profession or activity to which the offense relates;
2. Inhibition, for a period, of up to three years, from the exercise of corporate governance positions and senior, middle or lower management and inspection functions in corporate entities covered by this law, when the offender is a member of the governing bodies, holds senior, middle or lower management positions or acts in legal or voluntary representation of the corporate entity;
3. Publication of the definitive punishment, at the expense of the offender, in a widely-circulated newspaper in the vicinity of the offender’s headquarters or permanent establishment, or if the offender is an individual, in the vicinity of their residence.

With regard to infringements committed by financial entities, the investigation of offenses, instigation of legal proceedings, and the application of fines and additional sanctions are incumbent on the National Bank of Angola.

1. Should the assets seized from defendants, in the criminal proceedings for an offense relating to illicit proceeds gained through money laundering, be found registered on public records in the name of third parties, the holders of such registrations shall be notified to prepare the defense of their rights and to provide summary proof of their good faith, with it being permissible for the asset to be returned to them immediately.
2. Failing any registration, the third party who, in good faith, invokes the acquisition of seized assets may be party to the proceedings, in the said case, to defend their rights.
3. The defense of the rights of third parties invoking good faith may be incorporated into the proceedings up until the declaration of loss and shall be presented by way of a petition addressed to the relevant court, with the interested party having to indicate, forthwith, all elements of proof.
4. The judge may pass the case to a civil court when, owing to its complexity or the delay involved in the normal course of criminal proceedings, it cannot be conveniently settled in the latter.

1. Considered as proceeds are those assets obtained from the committing, in any form of participation, of the typical unlawful acts of procuring, sexual abuse of children or dependent minors, extortion, trafficking of stupefying and psychotropic substances, trafficking of weapons, trafficking of human organs or tissue, trafficking of protected species, tax fraud, trafficking in influence, corruption and typical unlawful acts punishable with imprisonment, as well as the assets obtained thereof.
2. Whomsoever converts, transfers, aids or abets any conversion or transfer operation of proceeds, obtained by themselves or by third parties, directly or indirectly, in order to conceal their illicit origin or to avoid the author of or participant in the offense being prosecuted or being submitted to a criminal consequence, shall be punished with a prison term ranging from two to eight years.
3. The same sentence shall apply to whomsoever hides or conceals the true nature, origin, location, disposal, transaction, or ownership of the proceeds or rights relating to same.
4. The punishment for the crimes provided for in Nºs 2 and 3 of this article shall apply even though the acts forming part of the underlying violation have been committed outside national territory or even though the place where the act was committed or identities of its authors are unknown.
5. The act shall not be punishable when the criminal proceedings relating to typical unlawful acts generating the proceeds depend upon the filing of a charge and the charge has not been filed within the said deadline.
6. The sentence provided for in Nºs 2 and 3 of this article shall be aggravated by one-third should the agent’s behavior be habitual.
7. When, up to the initiation of the judgment hearing in a lower court, total reparation is made 21 for the damage caused to persons offended against by a typical unlawful act and the committing of which generate the proceeds, without unlawful third party damage, the sentence shall be exceptionally reduced.
8. When the requirements provided for in the preceding number are confirmed the sentence may be exceptionally reduced should the reparation be partial.
9. The sentence may be exceptionally reduced should the agent tangibly aid in the gathering of evidence that is decisive in identifying or capturing those responsible for committing the typical unlawful acts generating the proceeds.
10. The sentence applied, in accordance with the preceding numbers may not be higher than the maximum limit of the highest sentence of those provided for typical unlawful acts generating the proceeds.

1. Considered as a terrorist group, organization or association are all those groups composed of two or more persons who, acting in concert, seek to harm national integrity and independence, impede, alter or subvert the functioning of the institutions of the State provided for in the Constitution, force public authority to commit an act, abstain from committing it or tolerate that it be committed or, furthermore, intimidate certain persons, people's groups or the population in general, by:
1. crimes against life, physical integrity or personal freedom;
2. crimes against the safety of transportation and communications, including computerized, telegraphic, telephonic, radio or television;
3. crimes of the willful provoking of common danger, through fire, explosion, release of radioactive substances or toxic or suffocating gasses, flood or avalanche, collapse of construction, contamination of food and water earmarked for human consumption or spread of deadly disease, plague, plant or animal;
4. acts that destroy or disable operation or deviate same from their regular purpose, definitively or temporarily, totally or partially, means of communication or roads, public service facilities or those utilized to supply and meet the vital needs of the population;
5. research and development of biological or chemical weapons;
6. crimes implicating the employment of nuclear energy, firearms, biological or chemical weapons, explosive substances or devices, incendiary resources of any nature, parcel or letter bombs, whenever, by their very nature or in the context in which they are committed, these crimes are liable to seriously affect the State or the population that they seek to intimidate.
2. Whomsoever sponsors or establishes a terrorist group, organization or association, those joining or supporting same, i.e., through the supply of information or material resources or through any form of financing of their activities, shall be punished with a prison sentence ranging from 8 to 12 years.
3. Whomsoever leads or manages a terrorist group, organization, or association, shall be punished with a prison sentence ranging from 16 to 20 years.
4. Whomsoever engages in acts preparatory to the setting up of a terrorist group, organization or association, shall be punished with a prison sentence ranging from 2 to 8 years.
5. The sentence may be exceptionally reduced or revoked should the agent voluntarily abandon their activity, eradicate or considerably decrease the danger caused or tangibly aid in the gathering of evidence that is decisive in identifying or capturing other persons responsible.

1. In addition to the groups, organizations and associations provided for in the preceding article, groups of two or more persons who, acting in concert, seek, by committing the acts therein described, to harm the integrity or independence of a State, impede, alter or subvert the functioning of the institutions of that State or an international public organization, to force the respective authorities to commit an act, abstain from committing it or tolerate that it be committed or, furthermore, to intimidate certain groups of persons or populations.
2. That determined in Nºs 2 to 5 of the preceding article is correspondingly applicable.

1. Whomsoever commits the acts provided for in Nº 1 of the preceding article, with the intention referred to therein, shall be punished with a prison sentence ranging from two to eight years, or with a sentence corresponding to the crime committed, aggravated by one-third in its minimum and maximum limits, should such be equal to or higher than same, with the sentence applied not being permitted to exceed 24 years.
2. Whomsoever commits the crime of qualified theft, larceny, extortion or falsifies an administrative document, with a view to committing the acts provided for in Nº 1 of article 23 shall be punished with a sentence corresponding to the crime committed, aggravated by one-third in its minimum and maximum limits.
3. The sentence may be exceptionally reduced or revoked should the agent voluntarily abandon their activity, eradicate or considerably decrease the danger caused, impede the outcome which the law wishes to avoid from occurring or tangibly aid in the gathering of evidence which is decisive in identifying or capturing other persons responsible.

1. Whomsoever commits the acts provided for in Nº 1 of article 54 with the intention referred to in Nº 1 of article 55 shall be punished with a prison sentence ranging from two to eight years, or with a sentence corresponding to the crime committed, aggravated by one-third in its minimum and maximum limits, if such is equal to or higher than same.
2. That determined in Nºs 2 to 3 of the preceding article is correspondingly applicable.

1. Corporate entities, enterprises and mere de facto associations shall be held accountable for the crimes provided for in article in 51, when committed in their name and in the collective interest, by their bodies or representatives, or by a person subordinate to the latter, when the committing of the crime has been made possible due to a willful breach of the surveillance or control obligations assigned to them.
2. The liability of the entities referred to in the preceding number shall not exclude the individual accountability of the respective agents.
3. The following major penalties for the crimes provided for in Nº 1 of this article are applicable to corporate entities:
1. Fine;
2. Dissolution.
4. The fine shall be set in days: 100 at minimum and 1,000 at maximum.
5. Each day of the fine shall correspond to an amount ranging between the equivalent, in national currency, of USD 5 and USD 5,000.
6. Should the fine be applied to an entity which does not possess a legal personality, the common assets and, failing their existence, or because of their insufficiency, the joint assets of each of the associates or actual beneficiaries shall be liable.
7. The dissolution ruling shall only be decreed when the partners of the corporate entity, exclusively or predominantly intended, by way of same, to commit the crimes indicated in Nº 1 of this article or when the repeated committing of such crimes shows that the corporate entity or enterprise is to be used, exclusively or predominantly, for that purpose, whether by its members, or whether by whoever exercises the respective management.
8. The following additional penalties for the crimes provided for in Nº 1 of this article may be applied, to corporate entities:
1. Court injunction;;
2. Temporary prohibition of exercise of an activity;
3. Withdrawal of right to subsidies or aid granted by entities or public services;
4. Publishing of court verdict.

This law must be regulated, by the Executive, within the period of 120 days, counting from the date of its publication. Any doubts and omissions arising out of the interpretation and application of this law shall be resolved by the National Assembly. All legislation contrary to this law is hereby repealed. This law shall come into effect on the date of its publication.


Seen and approved by the National Assembly, Luanda, May 27, 2010.

The Acting Speaker of the National Assembly,
João Manuel Gonçalves Lourenço.

Promulgated on June 18, 2010.

Let it be published. The President of the Republic,
José Eduardo dos Santos.