16 March 2026 — Publication
Key issues for accountancy professionals
Accountancy Europe has published a new factsheet on the 6th Anti-Money Laundering Directive (6AMLD), highlighting the key elements of the Directive that are most relevant for accountants, auditors, and tax advisers. Although the Directive is formally addressed to EU Member States, national supervisors, and financial intelligence units, it will significantly shape how anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing (AML/CFT) obligations are supervised, interpreted, and enforced for the accountancy profession in practice.
To complement the factsheet, Accountancy Europe has also released a practical briefing titled “5 ways the 6AMLD will impact accountants and auditors in practice”. This paper translates the supervisory and institutional reforms introduced by the Directive into clear and practical insights for firms. It focuses on how strengthened supervision, enhanced inspections, improved information flows between authorities, evolving reporting expectations, and reinforced enforcement frameworks will affect the day-to-day activities of accounting and audit professionals.
The publication of these resources follows the adoption of a comprehensive EU anti-money laundering reform package in May 2024. This package includes the 6AMLD, the Anti-Money Laundering Regulation (AMLR), and the Regulation establishing the Anti-Money Laundering Authority (AMLA). Together, these measures form a new EU-wide framework designed to strengthen the prevention and detection of money laundering and terrorist financing across the Union.
Within this framework, accountants, auditors, and tax advisers play an essential role in safeguarding the integrity of the financial system and protecting citizens from financial crime. While the AMLR introduces harmonised AML obligations for obliged entities, including the accountancy profession, the 6AMLD focuses on how those rules will be supervised and enforced by national authorities.
The 6AMLD defines the powers and responsibilities of national supervisors, including their ability to inspect compliance systems, assess risk exposure, review internal controls, and apply sanctions when necessary. These supervisory functions inevitably shape how accountants must fulfil their AML responsibilities, particularly in areas such as risk assessment, internal governance, and suspicious transaction reporting.
The Directive also introduces new provisions related to self-regulatory bodies. Member States must ensure that such bodies are subject to oversight by a public authority, strengthening accountability and consistency in AML supervision.
Another important feature of the Directive is the creation of new supervisory arrangements for firms operating across borders. National supervisors will be required to establish AML/CFT supervisory colleges when non-financial obliged entities, including accountancy or tax advisory firms, operate in several Member States. These colleges will facilitate cooperation among supervisors, coordinate oversight activities, and promote consistent enforcement of AML obligations throughout the EU.
The 6AMLD entered into force on 9 July 2024 and will apply from 10 July 2027. In preparation, accountancy professionals – particularly those in small and medium-sized practices – are encouraged to review their internal policies, strengthen compliance programmes, integrate sanctions screening, and ensure robust governance and staff training.
Together, the factsheet and the practical impacts paper provide guidance to help the profession anticipate regulatory developments, align with evolving EU expectations, and embed an AML-conscious culture into daily operations, supporting a compliant, proportionate, and risk-based implementation of the EU’s new AML/CFT framework.
