Amendment to the AML Act

Effective as of 01. 06. 2026, or 09. 07. 2026, as applicable

Ing. Marcel Muráni, LL.M.
Tax Advisor

Obligation to register a foreign trust fund

The amendment to the AML Act introduces an obligation for a foreign trust fund that meets the conditions set out in the new Section 24c of the AML Act to register in a new register maintained by the Ministry of the Interior.

The obligation to register arises if at least one of the following three conditions is met:

1. The fund administrator has permanent residence, other residence, a place of business or a registered office in the territory of the Slovak Republic
2. The fund administrator plans to establish, on behalf of the fund, a business relationship with an obliged entity, such as a bank, attorney, tax adviser, etc.
3. The fund administrator plans to acquire real estate in the territory of the Slovak Republic for the benefit of the fund

This obligation does not apply to trust funds registered in a similar register of another Member State. This means that funds established under the law of EU Member States are not required to undergo such registration if the relevant country maintains a register of such entities. This exemption also applies to trust funds established under the law of third countries, provided that they are registered in a register of trust funds of a Member State.

A theoretical alternative through which a trust fund could avoid the registration obligation is that the administrator would necessarily have to be a foreign entity and, for the business needs of the fund, a foreign legal entity owned by the fund would act in the territory of the Slovak Republic.

According to the explanatory memorandum, however, the trust fund still cannot itself acquire real estate or shares in a legal entity, since its registration in the register does not change the fact that, under Slovak law, the fund does not have legal personality. It is therefore only a transposition of EU obligations.

AML amendment in general

According to the new wording of Section 10(1)(b) of the AML Act, obliged entities may no longer rely solely on data from the Register of Legal Entities, Entrepreneurs and Public Authorities when verifying the identification of the ultimate beneficial owner. Instead, they are required to obtain information from reliable sources while applying a risk-based approach under Section 20a of the AML Act. According to the explanatory memorandum, such reliable sources include in particular the Register of Public Sector Partners, as well as foundation agreements and documents submitted by the client itself.

The scope of client identification is also being expanded. According to the amended Section 7(1)(b) of the AML Act, the scope of identification is extended to include the names and surnames of persons who are members of the management body of a legal entity or an asset association, such as a trust fund/trust. In the case of limited liability companies and joint-stock companies, the statutory body is considered the management body.

Another change is the restriction of public access to information on ultimate beneficial owners. From 10 July, this information maintained in the Register of Legal Entities will be made available only upon proof of a legitimate interest related to the prevention of money laundering. Persons with a legitimate interest will include journalists, members of academia and persons who are likely to enter into a transaction with an entity listed in the Register of Legal Entities. The Ministry of the Interior will decide on the application within 12 working days, or within 7 working days if the applicant is an entity that has demonstrated a legitimate interest in the last 3 years.

The newly added Section 21(2) of the AML Act introduces an obligation for obliged entities to register in the Police Force system designated for receiving and analysing reports of unusual business operations, within 30 days from the date on which they became an obliged entity. Existing obliged entities must complete this registration by 30. 11. 2026.

In the Trade Licensing Act, the new wording of Section 9 introduces a condition of good repute of the ultimate beneficial owner for four categories of trade licences:

1. Intermediation of the sale, lease and purchase of real estate, real estate activity
2. Bookkeeping
3. Provision of persons acting as a statutory body and in similar positions for companies
4. Provision of a registered office, registered office address and delivery services for legal entities and special-purpose asset associations

For real estate activity and bookkeeping, the new wording of Section 9 applies from 1 June 2026 without a transitional period.

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