FICA Compliance in Property: A Regulatory Shift from Documentary Compliance to Demonstrable Compliance
The Financial Intelligence Centre (“FIC”) is placing an increasing emphasis on demonstrable FICA compliance. For accountable institutions in the property sector, it is no longer sufficient simply to have a Risk Management and Compliance Programme (“RMCP”) in place. Institutions must be able to demonstrate that their compliance framework is understood, implemented and kept relevant to the risks faced by their business.
This represents an important shift in the practical application of the Financial Intelligence Centre Act 38 of 2001 (FIC Act)[1]. Compliance is moving towards an environment in which an accountable institution must be able to demonstrate how policies operate in practice.
Property transactions routinely involve substantial amounts of money and may involve multiple parties and intermediaries, including purchasers, sellers, property practitioners, conveyancers, lenders and financial institutions. A transaction may also involve companies, trusts, foreign persons, beneficial owners and third-party funders. These features make the property sector particularly relevant to a risk-based anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist and proliferation financing framework.
2026 FIC Directive 11 and 12
Directive 11 requires specified accountable institutions to submit a Risk and Compliance Return (“RCR”) to the FIC electronically through the FIC's designated platform.[2]
The 2026 RCR questionnaire requires accountable institutions to provide information concerning their understanding of money laundering, terrorist financing and proliferation financing (“ML/TF/PF”) risks and the implementation of risk-based controls.
The information supplied allows the FIC to develop a more detailed understanding of the risks faced by particular sectors and individual accountable institutions. The RCR serves as an assessment tool to assist FIC in identifying higher risk businesses and informing its risk-based supervisory approach.[3]
Non-submission of the RCR by accountable institutions obliged to submit constitutes non-compliance and may result in administrative sanctions, including financial penalties.[4]
Directive 12 takes this development a step further by requiring specified accountable institutions to submit a copy of the their RMCP to the FIC on an annual basis.[5] The Directive took effect on 7 September 2026, and applies to, amongst others, legal practitioners and property practitioners falling within the specified Schedule 1 categories.
The Directive is expressly aimed at enabling the FIC to monitor accountable institutions' levels of compliance with the FIC Act.
The significance of the RMCP is therefore no longer confined to its role as an internal compliance document. For the specified institutions, the RMCP is now also subject to a regular submission requirement, bringing the institution's documented risk-management framework more directly within the FIC's supervisory processes.
Where an institution updates and approves its RMCP after the applicable annual submission period, the updated and approved RMCP must also be submitted to the FIC within ten days of approval. Failure to comply with the Directive constitutes non-compliance.
The practical effect is that the RMCP should be current, accurate and reflective of the institution's actual compliance framework.
The Combined effect of Directive 11 and 12
The two Directives, when viewed together, place greater emphasis on the requirement for consistency between the institution's stated risk profile, its documented compliance framework and the way in which that framework is applied in practice.
The Regulator is increasingly able to consider the relationship between what an institution says it does and what the institution can demonstrate that it actually does.
Effective FICA Compliance in a Property Transaction
For buyers and sellers, FICA compliance may sometimes appear to be an administrative requirement that creates additional requests for identification documents, source-of-funds information, or information relating to companies, trusts and beneficial ownership.
In reality, these requirements form part of the risk-management framework within which the property transaction is conducted.
A properly implemented RMCP should translate into practical processes for assessing risk and dealing appropriately with unusual or higher-risk circumstances.
FICA Compliance is part of the Property Transaction Ecosystem
A property transaction may often involve several accountable institutions, including a property practitioner, conveyancers and financial institutions. Each institution has its own FICA obligations and its own risk-management framework.
FICA compliance is therefore not confined to one participant in the transaction. Each institution has its own responsibilities for identifying and managing potential financial crime risks.
This may explain why clients receive requests for similar or overlapping information from different participants in the same transaction. One institution's collection of information does not discharge another institution's independent FICA obligations.
What does FICA Compliance mean for our Clients?
Your transaction is handled within a documented compliance framework.
Requests for information and supporting documentation have a regulatory and risk-management basis.
Unusual or higher-risk aspects of a transaction can be identified and appropriately addressed.
FICA compliance contributes to the management of transactional risk. As the regulatory environment continues to evolve, our focus is on ensuring that our compliance processes are integrated into the conveyancing process in a way that supports both compliance and effective client service.
Good FICA compliance is part of good conveyancing. When the requirements are properly understood and appropriately applied, the compliance process provides structure, clarity and consistency to the transaction rather than being simply an additional administrative exercise.
[1] Financial Intelligence Centre Act 38 of 2001.
[2] Government Gazette Vol 729 31 March 2026 No 54439, Notice No. 7334, DIRECTIVE IN TERMS OF SECTION 43A(3) OF THE FINANCIAL INTELLIGENCE CENTRE ACT, 2001 (ACT 38 OF 2001) https://www.gpwonline.co.za/
[4] https://www.fic.gov.za/2026/06/17/media-release-fic-reminds-specified-accountable-institutions-to-file-their-2026-rcrs/ 21 September 2026.
[5] Government Gazette Vol. 735 4 September 2026 No. 55337, Notice 7887, DIRECTIVE 12 IN TERMS OF SECTION 43A(1) OF THE FINANCIAL INTELLIGENCE CENTRE ACT ON THE SUBMISSION OF RISK MANAGEMENT AND COMPLIANCE PROGRAMMES.
For professional conveyancing and property related legal services, please contact Ulrich Roux & Associates.
By Tarryn Lee Venter and Lonwabo Malimba
(Conveyancing Department)
30 September 2026
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