S.L. 331.10 Art. 2Interpretation. 

(1) In these regulations, unless the context otherwise requires –

"Act" means the Trusts and Trustees Act;

"AMLA" means the Authority for Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism established by Regulation

(EU) 2024/1620 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 May 2024 establishing the Authority for Anti-Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism and amending Regulations

(EU) No 1093/2010, (EU) No 1094/2010 and (EU) No 1095/2010;

"Authority" means the Malta Financial Services Authority;

"beneficial owner" shall have the meaning assigned to it in the

Prevention of Money Laundering and Funding of Terrorism

Regulations, specifically as applicable to trusts, and for the purposes of these regulations, it shall be specifically applied to the following:

(a) the settlor or settlors;

(b) the trustee or trustees;

(c) the protector or protectors, where applicable;

(d) the beneficiaries or the class of beneficiaries as may be applicable; and (REGISTER OF BENEFICIAL OWNERS)

(e) any other natural person exercising ultimate control over the trust by means of direct or indirect ownership or by other means, and without prejudice to any Rules or guidelines published by the Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit, this shall include any natural person whose consent is to be obtained or whose direction is binding in terms of the trust instrument or any other instrument in writing for material actions to be taken by the trustee:

Provided that for the purposes of paragraph (e), material actions means any of the following actions or any other actions achieving the same result:

(i) the amendment of the trust instrument;

(ii) the addition or removal of any beneficiary, or any person from a class of beneficiaries, or any action affecting the entitlement of a beneficiary;

(iii) the appointment or removal of trustees or protectors or giving another individual control over the trust;

(iv) the acceptance of an additional settlor or settlors as may be applicable in accordance with the terms of the trust instrument;

(v) the change of the proper law of the trust;

(vi) the assignment or transfer of all or most of the assets of the trust; or

(vii) the termination or revocation of the trust;

and "beneficial ownership" shall be construed accordingly;

"competent authority" shall have the meaning assigned to it in Article 2 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1624, and shall include authorities established in Malta, as well as authorities established in other Member States of the European Union;

"declaration of beneficial ownership" shall have the meaning assigned to it in regulation 3;

"Directive (EU) 2024/1640" means Directive (EU) 2024/1640 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 May 2024 on the mechanisms to be put in place by Member States for the prevention of the use of the financial system for the purposes of money laundering or terrorist financing, amending Directive (EU) 2019/1937, and amending and repealing Directive (EU) 2015/849 as may be amended from time to time, and includes any implementing measures that have been or may be issued thereunder;

"express trust" means a trust which is set up in writing, by means of a trust instrument as defined in the Act;

"Financial Intelligence Analysis Unit" means the Unit established under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act;

"Minister" shall have the meaning assigned to it under the Act;

"obliged entity" shall have the meaning assigned to it in Article 3

of Regulation (EU) 2024/1624 and shall include those persons that fall within the meaning assigned to "subject person" in the

Prevention of Money Laundering and Funding of Terrorism Regulations;

"officers" means the directors of a trustee which is set up as a company or, where the trustee is another body corporate, the persons entrusted with the management and administration thereof;

"private trustee" shall be interpreted and applied in accordance with article 43A of the Act;

"Regulation (EU) 2024/1624" means Regulation (EU) 2024/ 1624 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 31 May 2024 on the prevention of the use of the financial system for the purposes of money laundering or terrorist financing, as may be amended from time to time, and includes any implementing measures that have been or may be issued thereunder;

"self-regulatory body" shall have the meaning assigned to it in Article 2 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1624;

"third country" shall have the meaning assigned to it in Article 2 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1624;

"trustee" shall have the same meaning as assigned to it in the Act and, unless the context otherwise requires, shall include "private trustee".

(2) These regulations shall only apply to express trusts:

Provided that, these regulations may also apply to other types of legal arrangements, other than trusts, having a structure or functions similar to trusts, as may be prescribed by the Minister.

(3) Unless otherwise stated or the context otherwise requires, words and expressions used in these regulations which are not defined herein but are also used in the Act, shall have the same meaning as assigned to them in the Act, and words and expressions used in these regulations which are not defined herein but are defined (REGISTER OF BENEFICIAL OWNERS)

in Regulation (EU) 2024/1624, shall have the same meaning assigned to them therein, as the context may require.