The Council of Europe’s Economic Crime and Cooperation Division (ECCD) is currently supporting the Lithuanian Financial Crime Investigation Service under the Ministry of the Interior (FCIS) with strengthening its risk-based Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism (AML/CFT) supervision and its supervisory approach to the sectors within its remit.

As part of these efforts, starting in January 2024, the ECCD worked with the Lithuanian authorities and the Council of Europe experts in developing an AML/CFT risk-based supervision manual, to serve as a comprehensive guide for the FCIS’ Supervision Unit responsible for the effective monitoring and inspection of AML/CFT compliance by obliged entities. More specifically, the manual details the steps in the inspection process, contributing to the effectiveness of the supervision of compliance with the Law on the Prevention of Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing (LPMLTF) of the Republic of Lithuania. 

In order to familiarise FCIS representatives with the content of the manual and train them on its practical application, the ECCD has organised an in-person workshop on 16 April 2024, in Vilnius, Lithuania. The event allowed to present in detail each step of the supervisory cycle, starting with the development of a supervisory strategy and plan, going through the different phases of the offsite and onsite inspections, up to the finalisation of an inspection and the follow-up. 

The presentation was also accompanied by a practical exercise on the planning and conducting an on-site inspection, during which the FCIS representatives could test and apply themselves the different steps and phases of the supervisory process as described by the manual.

The event was organised within the framework of the Technical Support Instrument initiative “Strengthening Risk-Based AML/CFT Supervision in Lithuania”, co-funded by the European Commission’s Directorate General for Structural Reform Support (DG REFORM) and the Council of Europe and implemented by the Council of Europe.