NIBAF AML & CFT study plan

Define money laundering, terrorist financing and proliferation financing, and distinguish their placement, layering and integration mechanics using your own worked examples

Map the roles of FATF, the UN Security Council, the Basel Committee and Wolfsberg Group onto a one-page diagram of the international framework

Trace how the Financial Action Task Force Recommendations are structured (the R-series and Immediate Outcomes) and explain the difference between a Recommendation and a binding Pakistani obligation

Outline the architecture of the AML Act 2010: its purpose, key defined terms, and which bodies it establishes or empowers

Build a glossary of 40 core terms (predicate offence, beneficial owner, PEP, STR, CTR, TFS, DNFBP, ML/TF risk) with a one-line definition each

Read the AML Act 2010 end to end and list, section by section, the duties it places on reporting entities and financial institutions

Identify the regulators named in the Act and summarise the supervisory and enforcement powers each holds

Explain the roles of the Financial Monitoring Unit, the National Counter Terrorism Authority and the relevant investigation agencies in the reporting chain

Compare the AML Act 2010 record-keeping and reporting duties with the corresponding State Bank of Pakistan AML/CFT instructions

Draft a 15-question self-test on Act provisions and answer it without notes

Extract the SBP AML/CFT/CPF regulatory requirements on customer due diligence, customer risk rating and ongoing monitoring into a checklist

Distinguish CDD, simplified due diligence and enhanced due diligence, and state when each is permitted or mandatory

Explain beneficial ownership identification: thresholds, ownership versus control, and the layered approach for legal persons and arrangements

Specify the identification and verification evidence acceptable for individuals and for legal entities under Pakistani requirements

Apply PEP classification rules, including domestic, foreign and international-organisation PEPs, and the treatment of family members and close associates

Work through five short customer scenarios and assign a risk rating with written justification for each

Describe the FATF risk-based approach and explain why it does not permit a no-diligence outcome

Summarise the FATF Recommendations most heavily tested in practice: the R.10 CDD standard, R.20 STR reporting, R.11 record keeping and R.16 payment transparency

Explain the mutual evaluation process, the meaning of Immediate Outcomes and effectiveness ratings, and how a jurisdiction's rating affects its institutions

State the components of a targeted financial sanctions regime: designation, freezing without delay, asset reporting and de-listing

Walk through the UN Security Council consolidated list screening process, including how to handle a potential match and the obligation to freeze without prior notice

Differentiate targeted financial sanctions from broader trade or sectoral sanctions and explain why the distinction matters for a reporting entity

Explain the STR lifecycle from internal detection through the Financial Monitoring Unit, including tipping-off prohibitions and the protections available to reporters

Distinguish STRs from currency transaction reports and other threshold-based reports, and state what triggers each

Describe what makes a good STR narrative: who, what, when, where, why, how, and the funds trail

Map the internal escalation chain from front-line alert to compliance decision, naming the decision points and timeframes

Explain how transaction monitoring rules and thresholds are calibrated and why tuning matters

Describe how financial intelligence from the Financial Monitoring Unit flows back to reporting entities and what may and may not be shared

Analyse the indicators of structuring, trade-based laundering, mule accounts and terrorist financing and match each to detection signals

Draft an internal STR decision memo that documents the rationale for filing or not filing

Structure a compliance programme around the four pillars: governance and oversight, policies and procedures, risk assessment, and training and testing

Explain the role of the board and senior management, the compliance officer's independence and the three lines of defence

Build an institutional ML/TF risk assessment methodology covering customer, product, channel, geography and delivery factors

Design a training plan segmented by role, with content, frequency and completion tracking

Specify record-keeping requirements: what to retain, for how long, in what form and how to handle requests from authorities

Review your glossary, duty table, decision tree and process map and close every gap you can still find

Complete a timed 100-question mixed mock exam and score each domain separately

Re-study only the two weakest domains, using your own notes rather than new material

Recite the key thresholds, timeframes and reporting obligations from memory without reference to notes

Write a one-page personal exam-day strategy covering question sequencing, flagging and time allocation