As part of our compliance with New Zealand’s Anti-Money Laundering and Countering Financing of Terrorism Act 2009, we need to verify the identity of our customers.
Below are some frequently asked questions:
Who is required to complete identity verification?
The person opening the account
We need to have the identity details for the account holder. This includes all new and existing customers. This should always be a real person (not a company).
Directors and Shareholders
For companies using Private Box’s registered office or Principal Place of Business addresses, we need to complete identity verification for all directors and shareholders.
Trusts
A trust is deemed high risk under AML Law in New Zealand. If you receive mail for a trust, your account will be upgraded to business and we will ask for a copy of the Trust deed and to verify the trustee’s identities.
How long do I have to complete the identity verification process?
Customers are provided 30 days to complete the identity verification requirements.
What happens if I do not complete the identity verification process?
Failure to provide the necessary identification will result in our inability to offer you mail services.
We are in breach of the law when we supply services to someone whose identity we cannot verify. So, failure to complete the identity verification process will result in your account being closed.
How do I supply documents?
We will provide you with a link to complete identity verification. Please get in touch if the link you have is expired.
How long do you retain my information?
We securely store all identity documentation while you have an account with us.
If your Private Box account is closed, we are required to hold customer data for a further 7 years for Anti-Money Laundering (AML) as per our privacy policy.
AML CFT, TCSP and DIA – There are lots of abbreviated terms which are not explained. What do all of these terms mean?
AML/CFT = the Anti-Money Laundering / Counter Financing of Terrorism Act. An “act” is a piece of legislation that is passed into law by the New Zealand government. This is the act that makes it a criminal offence if we do not identify our customers. We typically refer to this as AML or the Anti-Money Laundering Act.
TCSP = Trust and Company Service Provider. This is the type of entity we are identified as under the AML Act.
DIA = Department of Internal Affairs. This is our ‘supervisor’ for our implementation of the AML/CFT Act.
DOB = Date of Birth
Your company is not a bank or financial institution?
Great question! Private Box is a mail forwarding company and does not deal with financial transactions – how can you launder money in the first place? At first glance, you would think the AML Act would exclude us. However, we are bound by the AML regulations as seen here. Particularly this bit –
” (2) This regulation applies to a person who carries out, as the only or principal part of their business, one or more of the following activities: … (c)providing a registered office, a business address, a correspondence address, or an administrative address for a company, a partnership, or any other legal person or arrangement.”.
So, it’s the “correspondence address” part of this law that has caught all of our customers by surprise! We are as frustrated as you are at these new laws!
Do you take any additional actions to verify my identity documents and details?
We are required by law to verify your details. We achieve this by utilising providers in New Zealand, which provide us with the ability to match data with those countries’ data sources. We only work with suppliers that we are satisfied have strong privacy practices in place.
We do not get a credit report on our customers. If the credit file is available in a country for a particular individual, then the details supplied to us are cross-referenced with their file (e.g., name, date of birth, and residential address).
For full details on who we use to verify your information, please see our privacy policy.
Does Private Box receive a financial benefit for giving out this information to these corporations, who admit in their privacy statements that they then provide it to others?
Of course not. We pay these companies for a service. We do not receive any financial benefit, and they will not disclose our customers’ details to anyone else. If they did, they would be in breach of the contract we have with them.
The privacy policy you are referring to is their public website and is different to the service we are using them for.
If you have concerns in this area, we can inform you of the organisations we have cross-referenced your details with and the contractual obligations they are under to keep your information secure.