Updated list of FATF high-risk countries and countries under increased monitoring: 25th October 2024
FATF List of High Risk Countries
In the latest plenary, which concluded on 25th October 2024, Senegal was removed from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Grey List, and Angola, Algeria, Côte d’Ivoire & Lebanon were added to the Grey List. The FATF Grey List is also known as the Jurisdiction under Increased Monitoring list. This list includes countries that are actively working with the FATF to address strategic deficiencies in their regimes to counter money laundering, terrorist financing, and proliferation financing.
FATF Grey List and Blacklist Update History:
FATF Grey List and Blacklist Update History:
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Countries Added
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Countries Removed |
Countries in grey list |
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The FATF an international body that establishes intercontinental standards to combat money laundering, counter-terrorism financing and combat financing of proliferation of weapons of mass destruction, updates the list of jurisdictions under increased monitoring thrice annually.
In the latest plenary, which concluded on 25th October 2024, Senegal was removed from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) Grey List, and:
- Angola,
- Algeria,
- Côte d’Ivoire
- Lebanon
were added to the Grey List.
In the plenary that concluded on 28th June 2024, Jamaica and Türkiye were removed from the FATF Grey List and:
- Monaco
- Venezuela
were added to Grey List.
In its plenary, which concluded on 23rd February 2024, the FATF removed UAE, Barbados, Gibraltar, and Uganda from the Grey List, whereas:
- Kenya
- Namibia
were added to the Grey List.
In October 2023, the, while the following countries were removed: Albania, Cayman Islands, Jordan. and Panama and:
- Bulgaria
was added to the Grey List.
The FATF established two statements as part of its listing and monitoring procedures to assure consistency with its international standards.
To learn more about the difference between FATF-blacklisted countries and greylisted countries: Checkout What are FATF Blacklist and Grey list countries?
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Jurisdictions under Increased Monitoring - Grey List
Which publicly recognizes jurisdictions that have committed to, or are actively working with, the FATF to resolve strategic deficiencies in their anti-money laundering, combatting of terrorism financing as well as combatting of proliferation financing (AML/CFT/CPF) regimes within agreed timelines. This list is commonly known as the “grey list.”
List of Jurisdictions under Increased Monitoring (Grey List) as of 25th October 2024
| No. | Country | No. | Country |
| 1 | Bulgaria | 12 | Nigeria |
| 2 | Burkina Faso | 13 | Philippines |
| 3 | Cameroon | 14 | Senegal |
| 4 | Croatia | 15 | South Africa |
| 5 | Democratic Republic of the Congo | 16 | South Sudan |
| 6 | Haiti | 17 | Syria |
| 7 | Kenya | 18 | Tanzania |
| 8 | Mali | 19 | Venezuela |
| 9 | Monaco | 20 | Vietnam |
| 10 | Mozambique | 21 | Yemen |
| 11 | Namibia |
1. Algeria
2. Angola
3. Bulgaria
4. Burkina Faso
5. Cameroon
6. Côte d’Ivoire
7. Croatia
8. Democratic Republic of the Congo
9. Haiti
10. Kenya
11. Lebanon
12. Mali
13. Monaco
14. Mozambique
15. Namibia
16. Nigeria
17. Philippines
18. South Africa
19. South Sudan
20. Syria
21. Tanzania
22. Venezuela
23. Vietnam
24. Yemen
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High-Risk Countries Subject to a Call for Action - FATF Blacklist
FATF categorises certain countries as “Blacklist” countries. This “Blacklist” identifies jurisdictions with substantial strategic weaknesses publicly in their AML/CFT/CPF regimes and calls on all FATF members to conduct enhanced due diligence and, in the most severe cases, implement countermeasures to protect the international financial system from money laundering, funding of terrorism and proliferation risks stood by the identified nations. This list is commonly referred to as the “Blacklist.”
Recently, the FATF has added Myanmar to this list of High-Risk countries subject to a Call for Action. Accordingly, with effect from 21st October 2022, the FATF “Blacklist” stands as under
- Iran and the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (subject to FATF call on its members/jurisdictions to apply countermeasures),
- Myanmar (subject to FATF call on its members/jurisdictions to apply enhanced due diligence measures proportionate to the risks arising from Myanmar).
AML Compliance pertaining to grey-listed and blacklisted countries
All Financial Institutions (FIs) and Designated Non-Finance Businesses and Professions (DNFBPs) are required to have appropriate risk-based AML/CFT protections in place to limit the potential of money laundering and terror financing posed by countries subject to increased monitoring or listed as high-risk jurisdictions subject to a “Call for Action” by FATF.
As a result, FI and DNFBPs must screen customers against the FATF Jurisdictions under Increased Monitoring and High-Risk Jurisdictions Subject to a Call for Action while onboarding and continuously monitor their transactions throughout their business relationship. DNFBPs should ensure that their customer due diligence measures verify their customer’s residence in, or business with, listed countries and that their transaction monitoring measures can examine the size, frequency, and pattern of transactions involving high-risk countries to determine the possibility of occurrence of financial crimes such as money laundering.
FIs and DNFBPs must file suspicious transaction/activity reports (STR/SAR) to the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) when red flags are observed so that enforcement actions can be conducted.
Further, FIs and DNFBPs are obligated to report the transaction or activity with high-risk countries subject to a “Call for Action” to the FIU by filing High-Risk Country Transaction Report or High-Risk Country Activity Report (HRC/HRCA), as the case may be
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High-Risk Countries - FAQs
What is the significance of the FATF?
What is a Grey-listed country?
When a regime is put on the Grey List by the FATF, it means the country is actively working with FATF to fight against money laundering and other risks. It means the government is taking active measures to identify the deficiencies in its regulatory structure and correct them within the agreed timelines.
Which country is blacklisted by FATF?
FATF Blacklist features the high-risk jurisdictions subject to a Call for Action. As per the FATF October 2022 plenary report, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, Myanmar and Iran feature in the FATF Blacklist.
What happens if a nation is placed on the FATF's blacklist?
A member of the FATF may impose economic sanctions on a country on the blacklist. North Korea, Iran and Myanmar for example, are both on the FATF Blacklist. As a result, sanctions against North Korea, Iran and Myanmar are possible.
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About the Author
Pathik Shah
FCA, CAMS, CISA, CS, DISA (ICAI), FAFP (ICAI)
Pathik is a Chartered Accountant with more than 26 years of experience in governance, risk, and compliance. He helps companies with end-to-end AML compliance services, from conducting Enterprise- Wide Risk Assessments to implementing the robust AML Compliance framework. He has played a pivotal role as a functional expert in developing and implementing RegTech solutions for streamlined compliance.