AG: Removal from EU blacklist clears way for business in Europe

Attorney General Dale Marshall has welcomed the long-awaited removal of Barbados from the European Union (EU) list of high-risk third countries, saying it clears a major hurdle for Barbadian individuals and companies doing business in the EU.

In a statement issued on Wednesday, Marshall confirmed that the required delegated legislation was published in the EU’s Official Journal, giving effect to the decision. Barbados will be officially removed from the blacklist on 5 August.

“This has been a long time in coming. The fact is that we ought to have been removed from this list a year ago, having been removed from the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) grey list since early last year. At that time, we were automatically removed from the UK blacklist,” he said.

“The practical effect of now being removed from this blacklist is that EU financial institutions no longer need to conduct enhanced due diligence on parties and transactions from Barbados. The need to do enhanced due diligence caused many EU banks to refuse to do business with Barbadian companies, and this has hampered not only personal transactions but also had a negative impact on our ability to do business with EU entities. Some companies have had to cease operations in Barbados because we have been on the blacklist.”

The AG noted that removal from the EU list had been delayed because some EU members objected to the removal of other jurisdictions from the list, and under their “all or nothing” procedures, no other country could be removed.

He stressed that Barbados has worked long and hard to meet the global standards set by the FATF, which he described as “a source of pride”.

“This administration has made an extraordinary investment in our institutions, established and staffed new entities, invested in training, updated our laws and adopted new norms, all to make sure that Barbados is able to fight money laundering and the financing of terrorism,” Marshall said.

“We can now enjoy some stability and predictability in our commercial activity with businesses and individuals within the EU member states, and that benefits all Barbadians.”