Parliament approves rules for financial intelligence unit to regain bank-data access

Estonia’s parliament has approved amendments setting out when the Financial Intelligence Unit may request bank data through the enforcement register, ERR reports. The changes also define the Tax and Customs Board’s powers and introduce safeguards for people’s financial information.

The Financial Intelligence Unit has been unable to request bank data through the register for more than a year. Finance Minister Jürgen Ligi called the parliament’s approval a relief, saying the interruption had lasted too long and was a disproportionate response to concerns raised by the Chancellor of Justice.

Justice and Digital Affairs Minister Liisa Pakosta suspended the unit’s access last summer after an inspection found that it had obtained people’s and companies’ bank statements through the register without an adequate legal basis or the account holder’s consent. The Chancellor of Justice had said that bank statements contain extensive personal information and that parliament should decide whether an agency could access them, after proper analysis.

Under the amendments, the unit may request statements only to the extent necessary for a specific proceeding and when the information cannot be obtained another way. Requests must be logged, and their necessity and legal basis documented. The Data Protection Inspectorate will regularly review requests for bank statements.

The unit declined to assess whether the changes address all the deficiencies identified by the Chancellor of Justice, saying that assessment is for the legislature and the Chancellor to make. Its communications specialist, Indra Suvi, said the unit needs adequate tools to combat evolving criminal activity while society considers how to balance that work with fundamental rights.

The amendments have not yet taken effect. President Ülle Madise, who was Chancellor of Justice when the concerns were raised, must either promulgate them or return them to parliament. The changes also restore the unit’s authority to conduct on-site inspections, including at bank branches.