Suspicious Activity Report (SAR)
Definition
A disclosure filed with the financial intelligence unit when a reporting entity knows, suspects, or has reasonable grounds to suspect that a transaction or account is related to money laundering or terrorist financing. Called a Suspicious Transaction Report (STR) in some jurisdictions. In India, reported to the Financial Intelligence Unit-India (FIU-IND).
- Filed with
- Financial intelligence unit
- Triggers filing
- Known, suspected, or reasonable grounds to suspect ML/TF
- Alternate name
- Suspicious Transaction Report (STR)
- India recipient
- FIU-IND
Common questions
What is the practical difference between an SAR and an STR?+
They serve the same function of alerting the financial intelligence unit to a suspicious transaction or account, but the two terms come from different jurisdictions' AML statutes. Some countries such as India use STR, while others use SAR; the underlying obligation and threshold for filing are conceptually the same.
What triggers the reasonable-grounds-to-suspect threshold for filing?+
The threshold is deliberately lower than certainty; it is met when a transaction's pattern, structuring, or inconsistency with the customer's known profile would lead a reasonable compliance officer to suspect a link to money laundering or terrorist financing, even without direct proof. Reporting entities are required to file even on suspicion alone, not just confirmed wrongdoing.
Related terms
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- FATF Recommendations
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- Mutual Evaluation Report (MER)
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- Transaction Monitoring System (TMS)
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