On 14 January 2026, the Lebanese Minister of Justice issued Circular No. 65, consolidating two earlier circulars and imposing a comprehensive set of anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorism financing (CTF) obligations on notaries public across Lebanon. The circular is grounded in Law No. 44/2015 (the AML/CTF Law) and Law No. 337/1994 (the Notary Public Law), and it represents a significant expansion of AML gatekeeping responsibilities beyond banks and financial institutions to the notarial profession.

This is not a cosmetic reform. Lebanon has been on the FATF grey list since October 2024, and the pressure to demonstrate meaningful progress in combating financial crime is real. By targeting notaries, who authenticate the very transactions through which illicit funds are most commonly laundered in Lebanon (namely real estate deals, corporate formations, and share transfers), the Ministry of Justice is closing one of the more conspicuous gaps in the country’s AML infrastructure.

What Transactions Are Covered?

The circular casts a wide net. It applies to virtually every transaction of economic significance that passes through a notary’s office, including real estate sale contracts, lease agreements, irrevocable powers of attorney, banking powers of attorney, company incorporation documents, share and quota transfers, general assembly minutes involving financial amounts (such as capital increases or dividend distributions), and the sale or lease of commercial establishments.

Notably, the circular also extends to transactions that are merely given a certified date (ta’rikh sahih) by the notary, rather than fully authenticated. This is an important detail: it means the obligations apply even where the notary’s involvement is limited to date certification, a common practice for private agreements that parties wish to make opposable to third parties. The only excluded categories are electoral transactions, employment contracts, and court representation powers of attorney.

The Core Obligations

The circular imposes six main obligations on notaries, which together amount to a KYC and due diligence framework that mirrors, in simplified form, what banks have been required to do for years.

Source of Funds Inquiry

Notaries must now inquire about the source of funds in every covered transaction and record the answer in the deed itself. Where payment is made by bank transfer or cheque, recording the reference number suffices. Where payment is in cash, the requirements are more demanding: the notary must prepare a separate certified document in which the paying party declares the source of the cash, their profession, whether their income is commensurate with the transaction value, and must attach supporting evidence where available.

For transactions between relatives up to the fourth degree, a lighter regime applies: a simple declaration of the family relationship suffices, without the need for a detailed source-of-funds breakdown.

Broker Identification

The notary must ask the parties whether a broker or intermediary was involved in the transaction and, if so, record the broker’s full identity and tax registration number in the deed. If the parties refuse to make this declaration, the notary is prohibited from proceeding with authentication.

Sanctions Screening

Before authenticating any covered transaction, the notary must verify that none of the parties appear on the Lebanese national sanctions list or on the UN Security Council sanctions lists. If a name appears on any list, the notary must refuse to proceed and report the matter to the Ministry of Justice and the Special Investigation Commission (SIC). A prescribed declaration confirming that the screening was conducted must be inserted into the body of every deed.

Mandatory AML Warning

Notaries are required to inform all parties of the substance of Articles 2 and 3 of Law 44/2015, which define money laundering and prescribe criminal penalties of three to seven years’ imprisonment and fines of up to twice the laundered amount. The circular goes further than merely requiring recitation: it mandates that the notary explain the nature of these provisions to the parties before they sign.

Beneficial Ownership Disclosure

The buyer or lessee in covered transactions must sign a beneficial owner declaration form (Form M18), which is authenticated by the notary as a standalone certified document. This requirement targets the use of nominees and front persons, a well-known vulnerability in Lebanese real estate and corporate ownership structures.

Practical Impact

For practitioners, the immediate effect is that notarized transactions will take longer, cost more, and require more documentation. The separate certified documents for source-of-funds declarations and beneficial ownership forms each attract their own notary authentication fees, adding to transaction costs. Parties should come prepared with identification of their funding source, supporting evidence where payments are in cash, and the identity and tax details of any broker involved.

For corporate transactions specifically (company incorporations, share transfers, and general assembly resolutions involving financial amounts), the requirements add a new compliance layer that founders, shareholders, and their counsel need to anticipate. The requirement to declare beneficial ownership at the notarial stage means that beneficial ownership information will now be captured at the point of transaction, not merely at the banking level.

More broadly, the circular represents a philosophical shift. Notaries in Lebanon have traditionally functioned as authenticators of documents, confirming identities and dates, not interrogating the substance of transactions. This circular effectively transforms them into front-line AML compliance officers, with an affirmative duty to inquire, verify, and refuse service where red flags arise. The penalties for non-compliance are not abstract: Article 3 of Law 44/2015 provides for imprisonment of three to seven years.

Whether this new framework will prove effective depends largely on enforcement. The obligations are clear and well-structured, and the Notary Syndicate’s implementation instructions suggest a seriousness of purpose. But the real test will be whether notaries are given the tools, training, and institutional support to carry out sanctions screening and source-of-funds inquiries meaningfully, rather than as a box-ticking exercise. Lebanon’s path off the FATF grey list may depend, in part, on the answer.

Sources

•  Circular No. 65 of the Minister of Justice, dated 14 January 2026, consolidating Circulars No. 1355 of 2 October 2025 and No. 1438.

•  Notary Syndicate Implementation Instructions for Circular No. 65, dated 15 January 2026.

•  Law No. 44 of 24 November 2015 (Anti-Money Laundering and Counter-Terrorism Financing Law).

•  Law No. 337 of 8 June 1994 (Notary Public System and Notary Fees Law).