Unexplained Wealth – Application

> Asset Recovery and Management Division > Unexplained Wealth Unit > Unexplained Wealth – Application
The FCC Act applies to:

The property of Citizens of Mauritius




Property exceeding MUR 10 million – except when it consists of cash seized by an investigatory authority, in which case the limit is MUR 2.5 million

Property acquired within 7 years before 1st January 2016



The Unexplained Wealth Unit is responsible for investigating cases of unexplained wealth, initiating civil proceedings for confiscation, and managing the recovered assets.

The Unexplained Wealth Unit may investigate whether any person

Has a standard of living which is commensurate with his emoluments or other income.



Owns, possesses, has custody or control of, or which are believed to have been used in the acquisition of, property to an extent which is disproportionate to his emoluments or other income.

Is able to justify as to how he came into ownership, possession, custody or control of any property.



The provisions of the FCC Act apply to persons who have accumulated wealth through means that are not necessarily criminal but are nonetheless unjustifiable based on their known income.

An unexplained wealth order is an action ‘in rem’, directed against the property itself rather than the person who owns it, making it a powerful tool for addressing properties suspected of being acquired through illicit means.

The unexplained wealth framework is intended to bypass lengthy and uncertain criminal proceedings and deny criminals the benefits of illicitly-funded property without the need for a criminal conviction. And it has been successfully applied whilst respondents were in jail or on bail pending the completion of police enquiries.