"Democratic Bulgaria“ has introduced changes to the Law on Measures Against Money Laundering, with which it proposes effective implementation in Bulgaria of the sanction regimes under the Global “Magnitsky” Act and other international restrictive measures.
This was stated by the coalition.
The legislative initiative comes against the backdrop of the announced readiness of the Ministry of Interior to cooperate with the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the US Treasury Department – OFAC. The Ministry of Interior stated that the Bulgarian authorities are ready to provide information, documents, evidence, data on corporate connections and other materials related to the implementation and effectiveness of the “Magnitsky“ sanctions.
According to “Democratic Bulgaria“, the stated readiness to cooperate with OFAC must be supported by a solid legal framework that does not allow for circumvention of the sanctions. Therefore, the amendments introduced provide for clear rules in Bulgarian legislation, so that the measures have a real effect on the financial activity of sanctioned persons in Bulgaria.
The proposed amendments introduce a requirement for all persons obliged under the law to carry out a comprehensive check, ongoing and extended monitoring of sanctioned persons and their related persons, as well as to provide the results of financial intelligence.
Any transaction or operation of a sanctioned person or a person related to him will be considered suspicious and will be reported in the general manner to the financial intelligence unit, as well as to the National Assembly.
The aim is to guarantee the security of the financial system, to limit the risks of money laundering and to create visibility on the financial activity of sanctioned persons in Bulgaria.
The draft law also provides for the Bulgarian National Bank to publish information on the accounts and safes of sanctioned persons. The data will not include the value of the funds in the accounts and do not constitute a disclosure of banking secrecy.
The changes also introduce a legal definition of the term “sanctioned person“. It covers persons against whom sanctions or restrictive measures have been imposed by authorized bodies of the European Union, the United Nations, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, as well as by EU member states or the OECD.
This is another attempt by “Democratic Bulgaria“ to introduce stricter control and effective implementation of the “Magnitsky“ sanction measures. In 2025, similar texts were proposed between the first and second readings during amendments to the Law on Measures Against the Financing of Terrorism and the Law on Measures Against Money Laundering.
The “Magnitsky“ measures were also part of the proposals from “Democratic Bulgaria“ the so-called “sanitary cordon“ around Delyan Peevski. Despite the requests of some parties, it was violated, after which the formation of the “Zhelyazkov“ cabinet followed.