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The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network this week published a "frequently asked questions" document to help financial institutions determine how they are affected by a final rule issued in May on customer due diligence under the Bank Secrecy Act.

The rules' applicability date for covered financial institutions is May 11, 2018. The FAQs address questions like which institutions are covered, the definition of a "beneficial owner" and exemptions under the rules.

The final rules will amend the agency's existing rules to include explicit customer due diligence requirements, including a requirement for those opening bank or credit union accounts for a "legal entity" to provide information on the beneficial owners of the account.

FinCEN stated in the final rules that financial institutions may rely on the beneficial ownership information supplied by the customer. It said the identification and verification procedures for beneficial owners are very similar to those for individual customers under a financial institution's customer identification program.

For more on the due diligence rules, see NAFCU's Final Regulation and Compliance Blog post.