Jamaica's National Risk Assessment 2026: Emerging Risks

Jamaica has made significant strides in strengthening its anti-money laundering and counter-terrorism financing framework, according to the Third National Risk Assessment (“NRA3”) released in June 2026. Covering the period 2021–2025, the report highlights notable improvements in the country's ability to identify, prevent, and respond to financial crime while underscoring the need for continued vigilance.

One of the report's most significant findings is the improvement in Jamaica's overall money laundering risk rating, which declined from Medium-High in 2021 to Medium in 2025. This progress reflects stronger regulatory oversight, enhanced enforcement efforts, improved inter-agency coordination, and greater compliance across the financial sector.

Despite these gains, the assessment notes that serious threats remain. Narcotics trafficking continues to pose the highest money laundering risk, followed by fraud, cyber-enabled crime, corruption, organised crime, and tax-related offences. These activities continue to generate substantial illicit proceeds and require sustained enforcement and preventive measures.

The report also highlights increased resilience within the financial sector. Regulated financial institutions have strengthened customer due diligence, transaction monitoring, and suspicious transaction reporting, making it more difficult for criminals to exploit the formal financial system. However, vulnerabilities persist in some non-financial sectors, particularly real estate development and certain designated non-financial institutions (“DNFIs”), where additional oversight and stronger compliance measures are needed.

Looking ahead, the National Risk Assessment emphasises that maintaining Jamaica's progress will require continued collaboration among government agencies, regulators, financial institutions, DNFIs, and the wider private sector. Strengthening risk-based supervision, enhancing information sharing, and remaining responsive to emerging threats will be essential to safeguarding the integrity of Jamaica's financial system and supporting sustainable economic growth.