FIAU collected €437,000 in fines in 2024
Parliamentary reply reveals 2024 collections fell well below 2023 and 2022 figures
Around €437,000 in fines were collected by the Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit (FIAU) in 2024 – less than one-third of the amount collected in 2023 – according to information tabled in Parliament.
The figures were provided by Finance Minister Clyde Caruana in response to a parliamentary question by PN MP David Agius, who asked for a breakdown of the total fines issued and the amount collected by the FIAU from 2019 to 2024.
Caruana said that in 2024, a total of 84 fines were issued, while €437,476 were collected.
In 2023, 144 fines were issued in total while the sum of €1,407,475 was collected.
The highest total was recorded in 2022, with the amount collected amounting to €3,557,701. That year, 145 fines were issued – just one more than in 2023.
In 2021, 176 fines were issued, while €1,184,317 were recovered. The year before, in 2020, 170 fines were issued, while €2,103,277 were recovered.
The smallest number of fines was recorded in 2019. That year, 20 fines were issued, while €37,050 were recovered.
Caruana also noted that the total fines collected in a given year sometimes include recoveries of fines that were imposed in previous years. He explained that this occurs for several reasons, but primarily because fines exceeding €5,000 can be appealed before the Court of Appeal (Inferior Jurisdiction).
“Naturally, the obligation to pay the fine is suspended until a final judgment is reached by the same court,” he said.
“The Court of Appeal has the authority to annul, vary, or confirm the fine as imposed by the FIAU, and as such, this can also impact the amounts collected in fines.”