What is a Politically Exposed Person?
A “politically exposed person” is defined as someone who holds or has held at any time in the last 12 months a prominent public function including the following:
- heads of state, heads of government, ministers and deputy or assistant ministers
- members of parliament or of similar legislative bodies
- members of the governing bodies of political parties
- members of supreme courts, of constitutional courts or of any judicial body the decisions of which are not subject to further appeal except in exceptional circumstances
- members of courts of auditors or of the boards of central banks
- ambassadors, charges d’affaires and high-ranking officers in the armed forces
- members of the administrative, management or supervisory bodies of State-owned enterprises
- directors, deputy directors and members of the board or equivalent function of an international organisation
A “family member” is defined as:
- spouse, or civil partner
- children and their spouses or civil partner
- parents
A “known close associate” is defined as:
- an individual known to have joint beneficial ownership of a legal entity or a legal arrangement or any other close business relationship with a politically exposed person
- an individual who has sole beneficial ownership of a legal entity or a legal arrangement that is known to have been set up for the benefit of a PEP