FIC Act 38 of 2001General Laws (AML/CTF) Amendment Bill B15-2026FATF RecommendationsNational Treasury & ParliamentPOPIA
FIC Act 38 of 2001General Laws (AML/CTF) Amendment Bill B15-2026FATF RecommendationsNational Treasury & ParliamentPOPIA
All terms Glossary

FICA (Financial Intelligence Centre Act)

The South African law requiring accountable institutions to verify clients, keep records, and report suspicious activity, in order to combat money laundering and terror financing.

FICA is the law itself (the 2001 Act, amended repeatedly since, most recently through South Africa’s grey-listing remediation and the bills currently before Parliament) that requires accountable institutions to verify clients, keep records, and report suspicious activity.

For estate agencies, FICA compliance and FFC renewal are now functionally the same conversation: the PPRA doesn’t renew a certificate without evidence the FICA side is in order.

See it in practice, not just in theory.

Read how Lucere handles this on features, check the FAQ for common questions, or get started.

Related terms

FIC (Financial Intelligence Centre)The South African body that receives suspicious transaction reports and supervises accountable institutions’ compliance with FICA.
Accountable InstitutionA business FICA designates as needing to conduct client due diligence and report suspicious activity. Includes estate agencies, attorneys, banks, and others listed in FICA’s schedules.
FFC (Fidelity Fund Certificate)The certificate the PPRA issues that a property practitioner must hold to trade legally, now conditioned on demonstrable FICA compliance.
RMCP (Risk Management and Compliance Programme)The internal policy document every accountable institution must maintain, describing how it identifies, assesses, and manages money-laundering and terror-financing risk.

Browse the rest of the glossary

AML (Anti-Money Laundering) Beneficial Owner (BO) CDD (Client Due Diligence) CIPC KYC (Know Your Customer) PEP (Politically Exposed Person) PPRA Sanctions Screening Source of Funds STR (Suspicious Transaction Report)