Sanctions and financial crime specialist: profile for temporary assignments

Short answer: Sanctions and financial crime specialists screen customers, counterparties and payments for sanctions, money laundering and fraud, investigate hits and prepare reports. Financial crime contract jobs arise mainly from new sanctions packages, remediation projects and audit findings at banks, insurers, fintechs and industrial companies in Switzerland and Germany. Every level is in demand.

This guide is for compliance professionals, lawyers and banking or trade compliance specialists who want to work on temporary assignments in sanctions and financial crime. It covers tasks by level, the legal framework in both countries, how to land an assignment and what drives pay.

Who are financial crime contract jobs for?

Financial crime contract jobs suit professionals with experience in sanctions screening, anti-money laundering, fraud prevention or trade compliance who prefer project-based work. Companies bring them in when a workload peak exceeds what the core team can handle.

Typical triggers are:

• New sanctions packages: screening lists change, and customers, suppliers and live transactions must be re-checked within days.
• Remediation: files or screening hits have piled up, or the supervisor or audit firm has identified deficiencies.
• System and rule changes: a new screening or monitoring system is introduced, or detection rules are recalibrated.
• Vacancy or absence: a key compliance role is unfilled.

The topic is not going away: in its Risk Monitor 2025, FINMA lists money laundering and sanctions among the main risks for the Swiss financial centre.

What do sanctions and financial crime specialists do at each level?

Responsibilities grow with seniority, from investigating hits to leading the subject area. Most interim assignments are at the Experienced level.

The decision to file a report, freeze assets or end a business relationship always rests with the company, not with the specialist on the project.

How to land an assignment: step by step

1. Define your focus: sanctions, anti-money laundering, fraud or export control. Many projects need two of these.
2. Be specific about experience: name industries, customer segments, country risks and the type of cases, as far as you are allowed to disclose them.
3. List systems: screening, monitoring and case management tools are sought-after keywords.
4. State your languages: many documents are in English; Russian or other languages from sanctions-relevant regions are a plus.
5. Choose model and workload: staff leasing or freelancing, with a workload between 20 and 100%.
6. State your availability: after a new sanctions package, speed matters. If you can start at short notice, you are more likely to be chosen.

Switzerland and Germany: what differs

The work is similar in both countries, but the legal bases and authorities differ. If you work for groups with entities in both countries, you need to keep the two regimes apart.

In Switzerland, a sanctions report to SECO replaces neither the investigations under Art. 6 GwG nor a report to MROS. Specialists who handle this distinction with confidence are particularly sought after on Swiss projects. Our guide to a compliance career with temporary assignments covers related roles.

What does pay depend on?

Pay depends first on the engagement model, then on level, specialisation, languages and workload. Specific amounts are agreed case by case.

• Staff leasing: you receive a salary with social security. In Germany, Alpinum Solutions GmbH applies the collective agreements of the DGB/GVP bargaining group.
• Freelancing: you invoice an hourly or daily rate and cover social security, pension and downtime yourself.
• Specialisation: combining sanctions and anti-money laundering, or adding export control, widens your options.
• Responsibility: team leads and specialists who update policies earn more than those investigating hits against a checklist.

Formal functions such as the AML function can be taken on by interim professionals, via staff leasing or freelancing depending on client requirements and regulatory rules.

Limits and risks

• Responsibility stays with the company: specialists prepare decisions; reports, freezes and customer decisions are made by the company.
• Pace and pressure: the first days after a new package are intense. Agree availability and working hours in advance.
• Confidentiality: you will see suspicious cases and customer data. Confidentiality rules continue after the assignment.
• End of project: remediation projects end when the backlog is cleared. Plan your next assignment in good time.

Frequently asked questions about financial crime contract jobs

Do I need a certificate for a sanctions or financial crime assignment?

Not necessarily. Companies look mainly at practical experience: screening, investigating hits, ownership and control checks or alert handling. Certificates such as CAMS, or training in sanctions and anti-money laundering, show expertise and can tip the balance for senior roles. For entry-level roles, diligence and clean documentation count most.

How does sanctions compliance differ from AML?

Sanctions compliance checks whether persons, companies, goods or countries are subject to sanctions and implements prohibitions and freezes. AML checks whether assets could derive from crime and assesses customers and transactions on a risk basis. In practice the two overlap heavily, which is why many projects look for specialists with experience in both.

Can I get started as a lawyer without banking experience?

Yes, if you know the basics of sanctions law and anti-money laundering and work in a structured way. Lawyers bring experience with corporate structures and legislation, which helps with ownership and control checks. Good entry points are junior roles in remediation projects or in the trade compliance team of an industrial company.

Can I do financial crime projects part-time?

Yes. Assignments are available with a workload between 20 and 100%, depending on the client's needs and your preferences. After new sanctions packages and on large remediation projects, companies often ask for a high workload. Ongoing quality control or maintaining policies is better suited to part-time work.

Can an assignment lead to a permanent role?

Yes. Joining the team permanently (temp-to-perm) is possible; the terms are agreed in advance. When a company strengthens its sanctions or AML function permanently after a project, permanent roles often follow.

Next step

Alpinum Solutions is the leading provider of interim legal & compliance in the DACH region and fills sanctions and financial crime roles from junior analyst to team lead. Create your profile and state your focus, systems and languages.

• Careers: legal and compliance jobs as a project lawyer
• AML and KYC analyst on projects: tasks, certificates and pay
• Freelancing or employment via staff leasing? The professional's decision
• For candidates: all guides on careers and interim assignments

Last updated: 10 November 2026.