Guidance
The prevention of money laundering and combating the financing of terrorism
Gambling Commission guidance for remote and non-remote casinos: Fifth edition (Revision 5).
10 - Applying for a defence
Where the NCA’s SAR Portal is used, at the beginning of the online form, you will be asked to select the legislation under which the suspicious activity report is being made. Please select either the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002 (POCA) or the Terrorism Act 2000 (TACT), depending on the nature of your knowledge, belief or suspicion. Later in the form you will be asked if you wish to request a defence against money laundering or terrorist financing, depending on which legislation you selected at the beginning. Please ensure you answer ‘yes’ to this question if you would like the NCA to consider your request for a defence under either POCA or TACT.
Requests must be for a specified activity (or specified series of activities) and should not be open-ended, such as seeking a defence (consent) to 'handle all business dealings or transactions' relating to the subject of the request or the relevant account.
The SAR requesting a defence (appropriate consent) should set out concisely:
- who is involved
- what and where the criminal property is, and its value
- when and how the circumstances arose and are planned to happen
- why you have knowledge or are suspicious.
The UKFIU Consent Desk applies the criteria set out in the Home Office Circular 029/2008 Proceeds of Crime Act 2002: Obligations to report money laundering – the consent regime184 to each request for a defence (consent), carry out the necessary internal enquiries, and will contact the appropriate law enforcement agency, where necessary, for a consent recommendation. Once the NCA’s decision has been reached, the disclosing nominated officer will be informed of the decision by telephone, and be given a reference number, which should be recorded. A formal letter from the NCA will follow.
Home Office Circular 029/2008 contains guidance on the operation of the consent regime in POCA. It was issued to ensure consistency of practice on the part of law enforcement in considering requests for consent under Part 7 (opens in new tab) of POCA. This was in response to concerns from the financial services industry and other sectors and professions that decisions should be taken in an effective and proportionate way, with due engagement with all participants. The circular was formulated in agreement with key partner agencies and sets out the high-level principles by which the law enforcement agencies should make decisions on consent, and how these principles should be applied.
Although POCA provides that consent can be granted by a constable (which includes authorised NCA officers) or a customs officer, there is a recognised need to ensure that the practices of all law enforcement agencies are consistent in this area. Therefore, as a result of the circular, the NCA operates as the national centre for all authorised disclosures and for the issue of decisions concerning the granting or refusal of a defence (consent). To avoid confusion those making requests for a defence (consent) should route requests through the NCA. The decision-making process will consist of a collaborative effort between the NCA and the other law enforcement agencies, with the latter providing a recommendation to the NCA. While the final decision will be taken by the NCA, in most cases it is likely to be based largely on the recommendation provided by the interested law enforcement agency.
Timescales for a decision
All requests for a defence (consent) are dealt with by the NCA on a case-by-case basis. It may take the maximum of seven working days to deal with a defence (consent) request, however, in most cases the NCA is able to respond to requests for a defence (consent) within three days.185 Nominated officers should take this into account when deciding whether it is practical and reasonable to request a defence (consent) prior to the transaction or activity, rather than making a report after the transaction or activity.
In the event that the NCA does not refuse a request for a defence (consent) within seven working days (the notice period) following the working day after the report is made, the casino operator may continue to transact with the customer. However, if the request for a defence (consent) is refused within that period, the NCA can prevent the transaction or activity for a further 31 calendar days (the moratorium period) from the day the request for a defence (consent) is refused.
Once a matter has been appropriately reported to the NCA, the decision to proceed or not to proceed with a transaction or arrangement remains with the casino operator. Even if a defence (consent) is obtained from the NCA, the operator is not obliged to proceed with the transaction or arrangement.
Casino operators should note that a defence (consent) only applies in relation to individual prohibited acts and cannot provide cover to deal with a particular customer. Any subsequent activity will require separate consideration and, if necessary, separate requests for a defence from the NCA. Where a single money laundering offence consists of a course of conduct, the NCA may give consent for a series of similar transactions over a specified period. In cases where there is a range of different money laundering offences that may be committed, such as acquiring (section 329(1)(a) of POCA) (opens in new tab) and transferring (section 327(1)(d) of POCA) (opens in new tab) criminal property, the NCA may give a single consent to that person being concerned in an arrangement to facilitate acquisition and use under section 328(1) (opens in new tab) of POCA.
Granting consent
The NCA’s ability to grant a defence (consent) in such circumstances will depend on having sufficient detail about the future course of activity or repeated transactions in order to make an informed decision. This is considered on a case-by-case basis. It is not possible for the NCA to give 'blanket' consent for a reporter to carry out all activity and transactions on a suspicious account, individual or arrangement.
The NCA cannot give advice to nominated officers and casino operators in relation to the specific circumstances where SARs should be submitted or the terms for requesting a defence (appropriate consent).
Guidance
Comprehensive guidance on requesting a defence is available on the NCA’s website (opens in new tab).186
Exemption from applying for a defence
POCA187 provides that, where a casino has knowledge or suspicion of criminal property, it can transfer money or other property owing or belonging to a customer for the purposes of exiting that customer relationship without the need to apply to the NCA for a defence (appropriate consent) where the value is less than £3,000, and any customer due diligence measures (as required under the Regulations) have been completed before transferring or handing over the money or other property. Casino operators still need to report their knowledge or suspicion of money laundering to the NCA via an informational SAR. This exemption only applies to knowledge and suspicion of money laundering and there is no equivalent exemption for terrorist financing.
References
184 Home Office Circular 029/2008 Proceeds of Crime Act 2002: Obligations to report money laundering – the consent regime (opens in new tab).
185 NCA Annual Report.
186 Available from the NCA: Requesting a defence from the NCA under POCA and TACT.
187 To section 339A (6A) of the Proceeds of Crime Act 2002, amendment titled The Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) (Threshold Amount) (Amendment) Order 2025 (opens in new tab) which came into force on the 31 July 2025.
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Suspicious activity reporting requirements for remote casinos
Last updated: 22 October 2025
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Updated in line with revision 5 of the guidance.