The Money Laundering Reporting Office Switzerland, MROS for short, sits within the Federal Office of Police (fedpol) and is Switzerland’s financial intelligence unit. It receives suspicious activity reports, analyses them and forwards them to prosecutors where necessary. For financial intermediaries, the report is the moment when ongoing diligence turns into an act with legal consequences.
Duty and right to report
Anyone who knows or has founded suspicion that assets in a business relationship are connected with money laundering, a felony, an aggravated tax misdemeanour, a criminal organisation or terrorist financing must report (Art. 9 AMLA). In addition, Article 305ter(2) of the Swiss Criminal Code grants a right to report observations below that threshold. The difference matters: the duty requires a report, the right permits one.
When suspicion is founded
Suspicion is founded when there are concrete indications that cannot be dispelled even after additional enquiries. A single unusual feature is usually not enough; a combination — an implausible source of funds, shifting explanations, a hit in adverse media screening — can be. The enquiry before the report is not discretionary but a duty under Article 6 AMLA.
The process
Reports are filed electronically via MROS’s goAML system. They describe the business relationship, the persons involved, the suspicious events and the grounds for suspicion, with the relevant documents. Internally it should be clear who decides, who reports and who is informed. In small organisations this is rarely settled until it is needed.
After the report
From the report onwards a prohibition of information applies: neither the person concerned nor third parties may be told about the report (Art. 10a AMLA). Depending on the case, further duties apply, for example regarding asset freezes and client instructions; they follow from the law and the directives of the SRO or supervisor. Those who report in good faith are protected from criminal and civil liability (Art. 11 AMLA).
What the file must contain
The enquiries that led to the suspicion, the decision with date and responsible person, the report itself and subsequent communication. The decision not to report also belongs in the file with reasons. A complete audit trail protects both ways: against the accusation of ignoring a suspicion and against the accusation of reporting carelessly.