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Obligated institutions in Türkiye will now be able to conduct remote identity verification for non-Turkish nationals as part of efforts to combat the proceeds of crime, under a new communique from the Ministry of Treasury and Finance's Financial Crimes Investigation Board (MASAK), published in the Official Gazette and now in effect.
The communique, an amendment to MASAK's General Communique, sets out the procedures and principles for remote identity verification methods to be used in confirming customer identity under Türkiye's law on preventing the laundering of proceeds of crime.
Under the new rules, obligated institutions may carry out remote identity verification of non-Turkish natural persons using a passport that complies with the International Civil Aviation Organization's (ICAO) Document 9303 standard and includes near-field communication (NFC) capability.
The remote identity check must be conducted via video call by personnel specifically trained in remote passport-based identity verification.
The customer's information will be verified by using near-field communication to confirm that the identity data stored on the passport's chip matches the information printed on the passport itself.
If this verification cannot be completed, a business relationship cannot be established through remote identity verification. During the video call process, images showing both the individual and the passport information they present must be recorded.
The regulation does not prevent institutions from using AI-based applications for liveness detection or photo comparison purposes during the verification process, provided those tools meet conditions set out elsewhere in the broader communique.
Address information collected during remote identity verification must be confirmed within three months at the latest, under a risk-based approach, through a residence document.
A utility bill for address-based services such as electricity, water, or natural gas issued in the person's name within the three months preceding the transaction, a document issued by any public institution, or the relevant country's publicly accessible databases.
No money transfers or cash withdrawals will be permitted until address confirmation has been completed.
Institutions accepting customers under these provisions must take necessary measures to identify, rate, monitor, and mitigate risk. Institutions are prohibited from accepting nationals of countries they have designated as risky as customers through the remote passport-based identity verification method.
Institutions must notify MASAK within one month of beginning to accept customers under this method, detailing the measures taken and the procedures and guidance documents created.
Customers onboarded through this remote verification method will be classified as high-risk and subjected to corresponding monitoring and control measures.
Additional safeguards include verifying that any transactions are consistent with the customer's profile and the stated purpose of the business relationship and addressing any inconsistencies as needed.
To verify identity information, the customer must transfer funds from a domestic or foreign bank account or bank or credit card that matches their identity information.
Funds may only be deposited into the account opened by the customer from bank accounts held abroad in that same person's name, and any outgoing transfers from that account to foreign destinations may only go to bank accounts held in that same person's name.
If it is determined that a person who underwent passport-based identity verification has acquired Turkish citizenship or has been registered as a taxpayer under the laws of the Republic of Türkiye, a copy of their identity card or their tax identification number must be obtained electronically and linked to their customer information.
Separately, the amendment expanded the communique's scope to include Crypto Asset Service Providers alongside previously covered entities such as Portfolio Management Companies.
Other technical amendments adjusted cross-references within the communiqué and updated terminology, including replacing references to "financial institutions and certain non-financial businesses and professions" with the broader term "obligated institutions."
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