What must be Reported?

Electronic Funds Transfer

If you are a financial entity, a money services business or a casino, you will have to report certain electronic funds transfers (EFTs) to FINTRAC.

SWIFT electronic funds transfers

This reporting requirement is only applicable to you if you are a financial entity or a money services business and you send or receive EFTs made at the request of a client by transmission of a SWIFT MT 103 message, as a SWIFT member, through the SWIFT network. SWIFT means the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication. It is a co-operative owned by the international banking community that operates a global data processing system for the transmission of financial messages.

You have to report the following transactions to FINTRAC:

You send an outgoing SWIFT MT 103 message for $10,000 or more outside Canada at the request of a client in the following manner:

  • in a single transaction; or
  • in two or more transfers of less than $10,000 (that total $10,000 or more) if your employee or senior officer knows they were made within 24 consecutive hours of each other by or on behalf of the same individual or entity (24-hour rule).

You receive an incoming SWIFT MT 103 message for $10,000 or more sent from outside Canada at the request of a client in the following manner:

  • in a single transaction; or
  • in two or more transfers of less than $10,000 (that total $10,000 or more) if your employee or senior officer knows they were made within 24 consecutive hours of each other by or on behalf of the same individual or entity (24-hour rule).

These reports can only be made electronically using the batch file reporting mechanism (See Guideline 8B: Submitting SWIFT Electronic Funds Transfer Reports to FINTRAC).

You do not have to make an EFT report if you send a transfer to an individual or an entity in Canada, even if the final recipient is outside Canada. Similarly, you do not have to make an EFT report if you receive a transfer from an individual or an entity in Canada, even if the original sender was outside Canada.

Guidance on Tag :50: (Ordering Customer)

If you are a financial entity or money services business, see Guidance on Tag :50: (Ordering Customer) to get additional information on how to fill out Tag :50:.

Your reporting obligations regarding EFTs also include sending or receiving EFTs by any means, as explained in the following.

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Non-SWIFT electronic funds transfers

This reporting covers EFTs that are the transmission of instructions for a transfer of funds through any electronic, magnetic or optical device, telephone instrument or computer other than SWIFT MT 103 messages described above.

If you are a financial entity, a money services business or a casino, you have to send a report to FINTRAC for the following transactions:

  • You send outgoing EFTs. These are instructions sent electronically for the transfer of $10,000 or more outside Canada at the request of a client in the following manner:
    • in a single transaction;
    • in two or more transfers of less than $10,000 (that total $10,000 or more) in the following 24-hour rule situations:
      • if you are an entity, your employee or senior officer knows the transfers were made within 24 consecutive hours of each other by or on behalf of the same individual or entity; or
      • if you are an individual, you know the transfers were made within 24 consecutive hours of each other by or on behalf of the same individual or entity.
  • You receive incoming EFTs. These are instructions sent electronically for transfer of $10,000 or more from outside Canada at the request of a client in the following manner:
    • in a single transaction;
    • in two or more transfers of less than $10,000 (that total $10,000 or more) in the following 24-hour rule situations:
      • if you are an entity, your employee or senior officer knows the transfers were made within 24 consecutive hours of each other by or on behalf of the same individual or entity; or
      • if you are an individual, you know the transfers were made within 24 consecutive hours of each other by or on behalf of the same individual or entity.

Additional information about electronic funds transfers

There is an exception to the 24-hour rule explained above for an EFT with more than one beneficiary. For additional information about this as well as timeframes, means of reporting, EFTs in foreign currency and other requirements associated with EFTs, consult Guideline 8: Submitting Electronic Funds Transfer Reports to FINTRAC.

What must be reported?