Foundation certification

AML Foundations.

Understand financial crime, the controls that prevent it and your role in recognising and escalating concerns.

For people starting in AML, KYC and customer operations. No previous AML experience required.

Online · Self-paced · English or Spanish

€399Total programme fee
Enrol in AML Foundations

or pay in 2 instalments

Enrol in AML Foundations and pay in 2 instalments: €199.50 today, €199.50 in a month. 0% interest, no fees

Create your learning account to continue to enrolment.

Not sure this is your level? Take the free AML check

What your programme fee includes

Your programme fee covers the learning and assessment. Chapter knowledge checks can be retaken as often as needed; the final examination allows up to three attempts.

CPD hours
12About 12 study hours
Learning chapters
627 lessons
Capstone simulator
1Apply your knowledge
Course-material access
Lifetime.Revisit what you have learned

Applied learning · Your capstone

The Analyst’s Desk.

Move from recognising a concern to knowing what to do next.

5 tasks · Around 35 minutes · 70% to pass
One customer file. Your judgement.

Recognise what needs a closer look.

Compare the customer profile with the activity. Identify the pattern that deserves attention.

The full scored exercise is part of AML Foundations.

Explore the five tasks
  1. 01
    Triage

    Read the customer files. Decide what looks routine and what needs a closer look.

  2. 02
    Patterns

    Connect a description of activity to the financial crime concepts you have learned.

  3. 03
    Routing

    Choose the internal destination for a concern, with the information the next person needs.

  4. 04
    Reply

    Choose a professional response while protecting confidential information and avoiding tipping off.

  5. 05
    Handover

    Prioritise outstanding items and give the next colleague a clear account of what needs attention.

Our approach to skills

Develop the skills
behind the decision.

Understand the principles, apply them to realistic situations and build a record of what you demonstrate.

  1. 01
    Build the knowledge

    Understand what matters and why.

  2. 02
    Put it into practice

    Work through relevant decisions.

  3. 03
    Review the evidence

    See what to develop next.

Recognise a concern. Know how to respond.

Build the knowledge and judgement to recognise financial crime concerns, follow the right procedures and make a clear handoff.

17mapped skills across 6 areas

  1. 01Risk & pattern recognition

    Recognise when a file needs a closer look. Connect what you observe to financial crime risks and patterns. Explain why an activity may need review without jumping to a conclusion.

    Learn it
    Financial Crime: The ThreatRisk and Risk Management
    Practise it
    The Analyst’s Desk — Morning Queue and Pattern Board
    • Apply concepts
    • Analyse the facts

  2. 02Due diligence & KYC

    Understand the purpose behind the customer checks. Recognise the information needed to understand a customer, beneficial ownership and the purpose of a relationship. Connect those checks to ongoing due diligence.

    Learn it
    Inside a Compliance Program — Foundations of KYC and Ongoing Due Diligence
    Practise it
    Chapter knowledge check on compliance controls
    • Apply procedures
    • Analyse information

  3. 03Sanctions awareness

    Recognise a concern that belongs with the screening team. Understand the role of sanctions controls and the need to use the appropriate internal process when a possible concern arises.

    Learn it
    Inside a Compliance Program — Sanctions Compliance
    Practise it
    The Analyst’s Desk — Routing Desk
    • Apply procedures
    • Choose an internal route

  4. 04Reporting & escalation

    Give the next person a useful handoff. Recognise when to raise a concern, choose the appropriate internal channel and make the relevant facts clear. Practise the first-line role in the reporting process.

    Learn it
    Inside a Compliance Program — Reporting Suspicious Financial Activities
    Practise it
    The Analyst’s Desk — Routing Desk and End of Shift
    • Analyse the concern
    • Prioritise the handover

  5. 05Regulatory understanding

    Understand where the rules come from. Connect international frameworks, regulators and institutional responsibilities. Recognise that requirements differ by country and industry.

    Learn it
    The Framework: Who Sets and Enforces the Rules
    Practise it
    Chapter knowledge check on frameworks and responsibilities
    • Apply principles
    • Distinguish responsibilities

  6. 06Professional ethics & conduct

    Use professional judgement in everyday work. Distinguish principles from rules of conduct. Consider confidentiality, conflicts of interest and the behaviour expected in a compliance role.

    Learn it
    Ethics and Conduct — Code of Ethics and Code of Conduct
    Practise it
    Chapter knowledge check on ethics and conduct
    • Apply ethical principles
    • Evaluate choices
Explore the complete skills map 17 mapped skills

The subject and thinking skills developed in this programme. Explore the focus areas above to see what you will learn to do.

Subject skills

  • Risk Assessment
  • Customer Risk Rating
  • Typology Recognition
  • Due Diligence & KYC
  • Transaction Monitoring
  • STR/SAR Quality
  • Reporting & Escalation
  • Regulatory Frameworks
  • Sanctions Compliance & Screening
  • Predicate Offence Typologies
  • Professional Ethics & Conduct
  • Terrorist Financing
  • Proliferation Financing

Thinking skills

  • Application
  • Analysis
  • Evaluation
  • Synthesis

Your development has a record.

Your skills profile brings together mapped assessment and simulator results. It helps you distinguish performance on attempted work from the breadth of evidence you have built.

The syllabus

Six chapters.
A connected view.

How you study

Study online at your own pace. Work through six chapters with knowledge checks, apply what you have learned in the Analyst’s Desk capstone, then take the final examination.

From the nature of financial crime to the judgement expected in a compliance role.

27lessons
with chapter knowledge checks
View & print the full syllabus
Explore every lesson
01Financial Crime: The Threat7 lessons

Understand financial crime, the harm it causes and the mechanisms of money laundering, terrorist financing and proliferation financing.

  1. What Are Financial Crimes?
  2. Typology of Financial Crimes
  3. Consequences and Impacts of Financial Crime
  4. The Offences: What the Law Actually Criminalises
  5. Money Laundering in Focus: Stages and Typologies
  6. Terrorist Financing in Focus: The Inversion
  7. Proliferation Financing in Focus: Dual-Use and Procurement

Chapter knowledge check · 70% to pass · Unlimited attempts

02Risk and Risk Management5 lessons

Learn what financial crime risk means and how a risk-based approach guides its assessment and management.

  1. Understanding of Risk
  2. What Is Financial Crime Risk?
  3. Risk Management in AML/CTF+
  4. The Importance of Financial Crime Risk Management
  5. How Financial Crime Risk Is Managed

Chapter knowledge check · 70% to pass · Unlimited attempts

03Inside a Compliance Program7 lessons

Follow the core controls, from customer onboarding and ongoing due diligence to sanctions, reporting and relationship closure.

  1. Understanding of Compliance Programs
  2. Foundations of Compliance Programs
  3. Foundations of KYC
  4. Foundations of Ongoing Due Diligence
  5. Sanctions Compliance
  6. Reporting Suspicious Financial Activities
  7. Termination of the Business Relationship

Chapter knowledge check · 70% to pass · Unlimited attempts

04Financial Crime Across the Sectors1 lesson

Explore how financial crime risks and compliance controls vary across major regulated sectors.

  1. Understanding Different Business Sectors

Chapter knowledge check · 70% to pass · Unlimited attempts

05The Framework: Who Sets and Enforces the Rules5 lessons

Understand international frameworks, regulators, data protection and the consequences of non-compliance.

  1. International Organisations and Frameworks
  2. Who Is the Regulator?
  3. Difference by Country and Industry
  4. GDPR and Data Protection
  5. Consequences of Non-Compliance

Chapter knowledge check · 70% to pass · Unlimited attempts

06Ethics and Conduct2 lessons

Connect professional ethics and standards of conduct to everyday judgement.

  1. Code of Ethics and Code of Conduct
  2. Comparing the Two Codes

Chapter knowledge check · 70% to pass · Unlimited attempts

Learning, demonstrated

Check your knowledge.
Put it into practice.

Knowledge checks and the capstone help you apply what you have learned before your final examination.

01 · Along the way

Chapter knowledge checks

Pass the check after each chapter to continue. Revisit the learning and try again when you need to.

Pass threshold
70%
Attempts
Unlimited

02 · Bring it together

The capstone simulator

Apply the learning across five first-line tasks. The simulator has its own passing requirement for progression.

Pass threshold
70%
Estimated time
35 min

03 · Final examination

Demonstrate your knowledge

A 50-question examination covering the programme. Review the LMS instructions before you start.

3 exam attempts

Pass threshold
75%
Time allowed
75 min

Before your
final exam.

Review the exam instructions and applicable retake conditions in your learning platform before starting.

Independent work
This is independent, closed-book work. No AI assistants, course materials, external references or help from another person.
Confidential content
Keep questions, scenarios and answers confidential. Do not copy, photograph, screenshot or share examination content.
One timed sitting
Plan for one timed sitting. Check the exam instructions for the time limit, permitted breaks and retake conditions.

Exam integrity

Before you start, the learning platform explains the rules and activity recorded for integrity review. Records support human review and do not automatically disqualify an attempt.

AML FoundationsCertificate · AML Certification Centre
Accredited CPD
Verification
A link to share your credential
Record
Permanent, dated on issue
CPD
12 CPD hours · CPD Standards Office, provider 50475
Verify accreditation View a certificate example

The example is from an earlier programme edition. Current assessment requirements are shown above.

Your certificate

A record of
what you have achieved.

Complete the programme requirements to earn your AML Foundations certificate.

Recognition & standards

AML Active

Keep learning. Keep the evidence.

Practical tools, live expert sessions and a record of your continuing development.

Optional membership, separate from your qualification. It never changes the status of a certificate you hold.

Explore membership
  • Tools for your work

    Explore risk. Find original sources. Understand the pattern.

  • Live learning and CPD

    Learn and connect with an average of 150 professionals per session.

  • A short course, each year

    One included course credit.

Build on the core

Then make it
relevant to your sector.

Each sector pathway combines the complete AML Foundations programme with a four-part specialism. If you have already completed the core, you can take the specialism on its own.

Choose the operating context that matches your work.

Banking

Banking services, customer relationships and the risk shape of each line.

Virtual assets

VASPs, blockchain activity, crypto typologies and the Travel Rule.

E-money & payments

How EMIs work, payment services, digital flows and control.

Funds & trading

Investor structures, subscriptions, redemptions and trading activity.

Gambling & iGaming

Player activity, product risk, source of funds and sector controls.

Our SME team.

Subject-matter expertise from compliance, financial intelligence and investigation.

Ąžuolas Šopa

Ąžuolas Šopa

Subject-matter expert

Graeme Hampton

Graeme Hampton

Subject-matter expert

Perspectives from AML Foundations learners.

98% satisfied

The share of satisfied or very satisfied AML Foundations end-of-course responses.

How we collect them

AML Foundations

…the lessons were well structured, and video materials combined with text were especially useful for digesting information.

Veronika Latanovskaya

AML Foundations

The learning format was flexible, allowing me to study at my own pace and at a time that suited me. The course materials were relevant, clear, and well-structured.

Evgeniia Murashina

Frequently asked questions

Find the details you need to plan your learning.

Choosing the programme

Do I need previous AML experience?

No. AML Foundations is designed for new starters, career changers and people in onboarding, KYC and customer operations who need a structured introduction.

Should I choose the core or an industry pathway?

Choose the core for a general AML foundation. An industry pathway includes that core plus a separate sector track. Complete the core first, then apply it to banking, e-money and payments, virtual assets, gambling and iGaming, or funds and trading.

Explore industry pathways
Can I add an industry track later?

Yes. If you already own AML Foundations in your learning account, each industry track is offered separately. Complete the core before starting a track, and sign in to the same account to see the relevant enrolment option.

Choose a track

Learning and assessment

How is the programme delivered, and how long does it take?

Study online at your own pace through six chapters and 27 lessons. Allow about 12 study hours: around 10 hours of lessons, the Analyst’s Desk capstone (about 35 minutes) and the final examination (75 minutes). Add time for revision as you need.

Which languages are available?

The AML Foundations core is available in English or Spanish, including the Analyst’s Desk capstone and the final examination. Videos have subtitles in Spanish and French. Choose your language in the learning platform; you can change it at any time. The separate industry tracks are taught in English. The certificate is issued in English.

What order do the assessments follow?

Pass the chapter knowledge checks, then the Analyst’s Desk capstone, before the final examination. Knowledge checks and the capstone require 70%. The final exam has 50 questions, allows 75 minutes and requires 75%.

See assessment requirements
What happens if I do not pass?

Chapter knowledge checks can be retaken as often as needed. The final examination allows up to three attempts. Review the learning platform’s instructions for progression, waiting periods and any further-attempt conditions.

What support is available while I study?

Contact us for help with your learning account, enrolment or questions about the programme. If you need an accessibility arrangement or have a question about using the platform for an exam, discuss it with us before enrolling.

Contact learner support

Fees and access

Does my certificate expire, and is membership required?

Your certificate does not expire. It records your achievement on its issue date. AML Active is optional continuing development. Membership is separate from the qualification and does not change the status of a certificate you have earned.

Explore optional membership
Can I pay in instalments?

Available plans are shown during enrolment. Instalments use the standard programme price; promotional codes and member discounts apply to payment in full only. Learning access starts after your first successful payment. The final exam and certificate require full payment and the programme’s completion requirements.

Read instalment terms
What does lifetime access include?

Where lifetime access is offered, it covers the programme edition you purchased for as long as the Learning Platform operates. Future editions and regulatory refreshes are separate from that purchase. Necessary corrections remain included. The Learning Platform Terms explain access and updates.

Read the access terms
Can my employer pay or enrol a team?

Yes. Your employer can order seats for named learners in the learning platform and pay by invoice. For tailored learning or live sessions, talk to us first.

Order seats on invoice

Foundation certification

AML Foundations.

Build your AML knowledge. Put it into practice.

€399Total programme fee

Enrol in AML Foundations

or pay in 2 instalments

Enrol in AML Foundations and pay in 2 instalments: €199.50 today, €199.50 in a month. 0% interest, no fees

Up to three final exam attempts included.

Certificate issued on passing. Does not expire.

Create your learning account to continue to enrolment.