Bill to seize illicit assets submitted to Parliament
6 އޮކްޓޯބަރު 2026 | އަންގާރަ 09:11The government has submitted a bill to Parliament granting the Prosecutor General the authority to seize assets and funds acquired through serious criminal offenses. Under this proposed legislation, assets can be confiscated through civil standards in specific circumstances even without a criminal conviction, while also establishing a framework for international cooperation to recover such illicit assets held in foreign jurisdictions.
From a session of the 20th People's Majlis. | majlis
The government has submitted the "Proceeds of Crime Bill" to the People’s Majlis, aimed at seizing illicit financial gains and assets acquired through serious criminal offenses and closing avenues for further profiting from such assets.
The bill was introduced to Parliament on behalf of the government by Ali Fazad, the Member of Parliament for the Central Fuvahmulah constituency.
The bill is designed to ensure that perpetrators of serious felonies face statutory penalties while simultaneously preventing them from utilizing financial gains derived from criminal activities. According to the bill, its primary objectives are to identify, freeze, and seize such assets. Under the proposed legislation, assets can be confiscated by the state upon conviction. Furthermore, the bill outlines specific procedures that would allow the state to seize assets without a prior conviction under certain exceptional circumstances.
The exceptional circumstances under which assets may be seized without a criminal conviction include instances where the suspect is deceased, has absconded, or is otherwise beyond the reach of prosecution. In such cases, if it can be proven on a balance of probabilities that the assets were obtained through criminal activity, the Prosecutor General is empowered to freeze the property under a civil restraint order or forfeit it to the state through a civil forfeiture order.
Under this legislation, assets can be seized for offenses including money laundering, terrorism, homicide, drug trafficking, human trafficking, sexual offenses, corruption, and serious organized crime. Furthermore, the law empowers the state to confiscate assets linked to tax evasion exceeding MVR 500,000, as well as proceeds from robberies involving values greater than MVR 100,000.
Regarding international cooperation, the bill stipulates that the Prosecutor General may seek international assistance to freeze or confiscate assets obtained through criminal activities located in foreign jurisdictions. Furthermore, the bill outlines the procedures for providing reciprocal assistance to foreign nations in freezing similar assets located within the Maldives that belong to their citizens.
This law shall apply to Maldivian citizens and foreign nationals within the Maldives, as well as Maldivian citizens residing abroad. Furthermore, this law shall extend to all property located within the Maldives.
