Dirty land title professional#

In addition to financial institutions, corrupt companies and officials often seek the help of professional intermediaries. Proper oversight is needed to ensure the individuals – and their money – are clean before being granted a golden passport or visa. We are calling on the EU to set common standards and mechanisms for reducing the corruption risk posed by golden visas programmes. Our research shows that despite the risks, a number of schemes operating in the EU have revealed alarming flaws in their architecture. Golden visas limit exposure to the risk-based approach of banks, allow the corrupt to travel under the radar of sanctions regimes or even serve as a get-out-of-jail-free card, allowing them and their dependents to evade law enforcement or prosecution at home. Golden passports and visas are highly desirable for those associated with corruption because they offer access to a safe haven for their stolen wealth.

Member States of the European Union (EU) are particularly attractive, as citizenship or residence in one country grants access to the whole EU. Many countries run golden passport and visa programmes which offer fast-track citizenship or residency to foreign nationals in exchange for substantial investment in the country – often in real estate. It also helps shine a light on conflicts of interest, undue influence and dark money in politics. Public beneficial ownership registers facilitate cross-border investigations into corruption, as well as other crimes, such as human and drug trafficking and environmental crimes. The information in the register should be independently verified. Beneficial ownership registers must be accessible to law enforcement, the media and the public in open data formats. We believe there should be no anonymous companies and we campaign for governments to introduce registers that disclose the real owners of companies. In 2016, the Panama Papers shed light on the wide use of this practice – more than 140 public officials were using more than 214,000 offshore entities to hide the ownership of assets.Īnonymous companies fuel corruption, deprive those in need and concentrate wealth and power in the hands of the few. Anonymity and secrecy also make it easier for the corrupt to use dirty money to purchase properties and other luxury goods at home and abroad. These companies and offshore accounts pay bribes and buy influence. Without information, it is much harder for investigative journalists and law enforcement to detect wrongdoing and follow the money.Īnonymous companies and trusts used to hide the identity of the person at the source of the funds, become vehicles to launder and transfer stolen money, or to operationalise corrupt deals. It is easy for criminals to hide when companies legally do not have to state their beneficial owners, that is the real person who benefits from it.

Dirty land title