EU Further Reduces Proposed Cash Limits

As noted in the December issue of Cash & Payment News™, the European Union has announced a set of new directives to limit the amount of cash and crypto transactions in a move, it says, that will crack down on money laundering and terrorist financing.

In that set of directives, the proposed new limit for cash payments was €10,000 in all EU member states. A revised version, however, proposes lowering this threshold to €3,000.

The directive also covers cryptocurrency transactions, with any over €1,000 facing due diligence inquiries of the crypto-asset service providers (CASPs) facilitating them. In addition, third-party financing intermediaries and those trading in precious metals, precious stones and cultural goods will also be subject to the regulation.

At the moment, the limit for cash payments in the 27 EU countries differs widely. For example, the strictest rules apply in Greece, where cash payments above €500 are banned. In Spain, the limit of €1,000 was imposed in 2018 (described by the ECB at the time as disproportionate ‘as it could limit the usage of cash as an effective legal tender’).

In France and Italy the limits are €1,000 (for residents) and €3,000 respectively.

At the other end of the scale are Croatia and Poland, with limits to the equivalent of €15,000. There are also countries in the EU where there is no limit at all – eg. Estonia, Finland, Ireland, Cyprus, Luxembourg, Malta, Germany, Austria and Sweden.

Further to the Council agreeing its position on the anti-money laundering regulation and directive in December, trilogue negotiations with the European Parliament and the Commission are underway in order to agree on a final version of the texts.