PRIORITIES FOR 2006-07: PLANNING FOR THE NEXT YEAR

FINTRAC's achievements in the past year rested on our commitment to deliver useful and timely disclosures to law enforcement and CSIS, to a vigorous compliance program, and to the sharing of strategic intelligence with domestic and international partners. These pillars of our mandate will continue to be the yardstick by which we measure our success. 

We must also ready ourselves for new challenges and opportunities in the coming year. Working with the Department of Finance and others, we are anticipating changes that may follow from a number of national and international developments.

The measures proposed in the Government's 2005 consultation paper and the 2006 Parliamentary Review of the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act may result in enhancements to our domestic anti-money laundering regime.

The Government's commitment to bolster existing capacities to combat organized crime and terrorism was further underscored in the 2006 Budget. Along with the need to introduce strengthened legislation at the earliest opportunity, the Budget also emphasized Canada's responsibility to respond to global standards and risks.

Demonstrating leadership on the international stage is particularly important as Canada prepares to chair the Financial Action Task Force in July of 2006. The Forty plus Nine Recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force, or FATF, are the international standard for detecting and preventing money laundering and the financing of terrorist acts. As FINTRAC's contribution to robust Canadian leadership on the international stage, we will be taking a strong role in supporting the Egmont Group and its promotion of enhanced cooperation and capacity building among international financial intelligence units (FIUs).

To strengthen our national regime and to meet our international commitments, we are ensuring our preparedness to implement new requirements. These changes may include an expansion in both the current list of information items that FINTRAC may initially disclose to law enforcement and intelligence agencies, and enhancements to the requirements for client identification, due diligence and record keeping. Further changes may also include the establishment of new reporting entity sectors and a registration system for money services businesses and foreign exchange dealers.

In consultation with the Department of Finance, FINTRAC will continue to examine longer-term issues and their implications. The emergence of new types of financial services creates the possibility of further avenues for concealing and moving illicit funds, and FINTRAC will continue to pay close attention and to offer operational advice on meeting these challenges. Some of the areas to be monitored include the use of White Label ATMs, Internet banking and e-money.

1. DELIVER TIMELY AND HIGH-QUALITY FINANCIAL INTELLIGENCE TO LAW ENFORCEMENT, CSIS AND FOREIGN FINANCIAL INTELLIGENCE UNITS.

ANTICIPATED RESULT: Financial intelligence analysis and case disclosures that are widely accepted and used in investigations by law enforcement, CSIS and foreign financial intelligence agencies.

AT FINTRAC, we will continue to improve our financial intelligence product.

In furthering that goal, we are bringing on-line a new generation of systems to support analysis of increased depth and breadth. We will continue to build our relationships with case disclosure recipients by working to understand their priorities and by keeping informed of their ongoing requirements. We have developed a feedback framework to receive and manage our disclosures, which will guide the development of our intelligence product to better serve investigators.

2. ENSURE COMPLIANCE WITH THE PCMLTFA.

ANTICIPATED RESULT: Increased compliance with the law by reporting entities through more robust detection and deterrence of non-compliance. This will be accomplished through a risk-based compliance program comprised of awareness activities, the monitoring of data quality, compliance questionnaires and examinations, and by taking appropriate remedial action when non-compliance is detected.

We will continue to broaden our work with the many individuals and businesses that have been identified as reporting entities to ensure compliance with the law. The work of financial entities and institutions to implement strong compliance regimes significantly enhances the vigilance and scrutiny at the front lines, where financial transactions take place. The vigorous application of the compliance program's key elements will continue to be essential to our success.

Future legislative and regulatory amendments may include the implementation of a money services business and foreign exchange business registration system, and the expansion of reporting entity sectors to include dealers in precious metals and stones, real estate developers, and notaries (in British Columbia). Other proposed measures include the enhancement of FINTRAC's compliance tools, including the establishment of a civil penalties regime for non-compliance.

With FINTRAC's current anti-money laundering/anti-terrorist financing regime, we will continue to promote compliance with legislative requirements by reporting entities across Canada. We will, as well, continue to provide outreach to new reporting entity sectors so that they know about, and comply with, any new requirements.

3. DISSEMINATE STRATEGIC INFORMATION ON MONEY LAUNDERING AND TERRORIST ACTIVITY FINANCING TO PARTNERS, STAKEHOLDERS, AND THE GENERAL PUBLIC.

ANTICIPATED RESULT: Provide strategic intelligence, advice and analysis that enhance awareness and understanding of money laundering and terrorist activity financing, and that inform the development of effective Canadian and multilateral counter-strategies.

We will continue to develop strategic intelligence products and to strengthen our relationships with key stakeholders. We will consult with reporting entities and with enforcement and intelligence agencies, to deliver strategic financial intelligence of interest to them.

Internationally, we will continue to strengthen working relationships with foreign financial intelligence units (FIUs) and to provide technical assistance to developing FIUs. In this task, we will work with our Canadian government partners, as well as with foreign FIUs, and international organizations such as the Egmont Group, the FATF, the World Bank, the International Monetary Fund and the United Nations Global Programme on Money Laundering.

As part of our legislated mandate, FINTRAC works to increase awareness of money laundering and terrorist activity financing. In addition to the many presentations we give across Canada, we use vehicles such as our Web site, publications and this annual report to provide information about these problems.

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