El Salvador

New Documents

White House: Northern Triangle Leaders Discuss Cooperation on Transnational Criminal Organizations

U.S. Vice President Joe Biden issued a joint statement with the presidents of El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras concerning the fight against transnational criminal organizations, economic challenges and security issues.

September 25, 2016

OECD’s Global Tax Forum Evaluates El Salvador’s Compliance with International Standards

The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development’s Global Forum on Transparency and Exchange of Information for Tax Purposes evaluated El Salvador’s regulatory framework for tax transparency and concluded that the country has an overall rating of largely compliant.

March 14, 2016

OECD: El Salvador Signs Convention on Tax Cooperation

June 1, 2015

OECD: Tax Information Exchange Regulatory Framework in Place for El Salvador

March 16, 2015

U.S. Supports Security Programs, AML Initiatives in Northern Triangle

March 3, 2015

News

Weekly Roundup: Western Union Targets COVID-19 Fraud, Bank Shares Drop After FinCEN Files, and More

Swiss private bank dinged for poor AML, France investigates BNP Paribas, and more, in this week’s roundup.

September 25, 2020

Weekly Roundup: EU Ministers to Discuss Bloc-wide AML Regulator, UK Officials Route Iran Settlement Payment Through Third Country, and More

IRS whistleblower alleges political interference in Trump audit, U.S. threatens sanctions against buyers of Russian weaponry, and more, in the weekly roundup.

October 4, 2019

Midweek Roundup: Danish Lender Charged with Money Laundering, Australia Orders PayPal to Review Prior Transactions, and More

September 25, 2019

Midweek Roundup: US Lawmakers Urge Probe of Quashed Trump SARs, Deutsche Bank Assesses Transaction Monitoring Failure, and More

May 22, 2019

Midweek Roundup: EU Plans Crackdown on Passport Sales, Iran Adopts AML Legislation, and More

August 15, 2018

Enforcement Actions

0 Items Found

Key Documents

El Salvador Criminalizes Money Laundering (in Spanish)

December 23, 1998

El Salvador Mandates KYC, Transaction Reporting Procedures (in Spanish)

January 31, 2000

El Salvador Provides Instruction on CDD, Threshold Cash Reporting (in Spanish)

July 1, 2013

Important Facts

  • The U.S. State Department labels El Salvador as a major money laundering country. The country's financial intelligence unit was reinstated in the Egmont Group after demonstrating compliance with international standards, which provides Salvadoran institutions increased access to financial intelligence from foreign partners. El Salvador's dollarized economy and geographic location make it an ideal haven for transnational organized crime groups, including human smuggling and drug trafficking organizations. Money laundering in El Salvador is primarily related to the proceeds of illegal narcotics and organized crime. The following mechanisms are the most often used to launder funds: the use of front companies, travel agencies, remittances, the import and export of goods, and cargo transportation. Illicit activity includes the use of smurfing operations, whereby small amounts of money are deposited or transferred in a specific pattern to avoid detection by government authorities, often in connection with narcotics activities in Guatemala. Also, the free movement of citizens across borders with Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua creates a vulnerability for the cross-border movement of contraband and illicit proceeds of crime. Due to a lack of regulation, accountants, auditors, casinos, pawn shops and other designated non-financial businesses and professions do not file suspicious activity reports. El Salvador’s major money laundering convictions to date relate to ex-president Antonio Saca and his associates who diverted approximately $260 million of government funds into secret accounts, then through businesses owned by himself or co-conspirators.
-Source: 2020 International Narcotics Control Strategy Report (INCSR)

Rankings

FATF i

Technical Effectiveness
Compliant : 10 High :
Largely Compliant : 12 Substantial :
Partially Compliant : 18 Moderate :
Non-Compliant : 9 Low :

BASEL i

Rank : 86/141
Score : 4.87/10

TRANSPARENCY INTERNATIONAL i

Rank : 113/180
Score : 34/100

Tax Justice Network i

Rank : 85/133
Score : 64/100