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Reporting terrorist property to FINTRAC

From: Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC)

Overview

This guidance came into effect on June 1, 2021.

Terrorist property reporting requirements under the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act (PCMLTFA) and associated Regulations are applicable to all reporting entity (RE) sectors.

Specifically, while you have the obligation to submit a Terrorist Property Report (TPR) to FINTRAC under the PCMLTFA and associated Regulations, this obligation is triggered when you are required to make a disclosure under section 83.1 of the Criminal Code or section 8 of the Regulations Implementing the United Nations Resolutions on the Suppression of Terrorism (RIUNRST).Footnote1 It is therefore important to familiarize yourself with your Criminal Code and RIUNRST obligations in order to be able to comply with your TPR obligations under the PCMLTFA. As required by the Criminal Code or the RIUNRST, you may also have additional activities associated to these obligations. Further, you may be subject to additional obligations regarding terrorist groups, listed persons and other sanctioned individuals and entities (known as 'Designated Persons') that fall under various Canadian statutes and regulations. These obligations fall outside of the scope of the PCMLTFA and associated Regulations and will not be addressed in this guidance.

Throughout this guidance, FINTRAC provides references to external websites that make additional information available. These links are provided for convenience, but FINTRAC is not responsible for the accuracy or reliability of the information provided by these websites.

Who is this guidance for

  • All reporting entity (RE) sectors

In this guidance

  1. What is considered to be property?
  2. When must I submit a TPR to FINTRAC?
  3. How does a TPR differ from other reports submitted to FINTRAC?
  4. How do I submit TPRs?
  5. Are there other requirements associated to TPRs?

Related services

1. What is considered to be property?

Property is anything owned or controlled by a person or entity, whether tangible or intangible. It includes real and personal property, as well as deeds and instruments that give a title or right to property, or to receive money or goods. It also includes any property that has been converted or exchanged, or acquired from any conversion or exchange.

The following are examples of property for the purpose of a TPR:

2. When must I submit a TPR to FINTRAC?

You must submit a TPR to FINTRAC immediately once you are required to make a disclosure under the Criminal Code or the Regulations Implementing the United Nations Resolutions on the Suppression of Terrorism.Footnote2

No criminal or civil proceedings will be carried out against a person or an entity for submitting a TPR to FINTRAC in good faith.Footnote3

Criminal Code

Under subsection 83.1(1) of the Criminal Code, every person in Canada and every Canadian outside Canada must disclose without delay to the Commissioner of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) or to the Director of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) the existence of property in their possession or control that they know is owned or controlled by or on behalf of a terrorist group. In addition, you must disclose, to the RCMP or CSIS, information about any transaction or proposed transaction in respect of that property.

According to subsection 83.01(1) of the Criminal Code, a terrorist group is defined as:

According to subsection 83.01(1) of the Criminal Code, a listed entity is one that appears on a list established under section 83.05 of the Criminal Code. This list is a public means of identifying a group or individuals as being associated with terrorist activity. You can consult this list on the Public Safety Canada website. An entity for these purposes could include a person, group, trust, partnership or fund, or an unincorporated association or organization.

Through the course of your normal business activities, you may come across information that leads you to determine that a client is associated with or is part of a terrorist group. This can occur when you come across:

Regulations Implementing the United Nations Resolutions on the Suppression of Terrorism (RIUNRST)

Under subsection 8(1) of the RIUNRST, every person in Canada, every Canadian outside Canada, and certain prescribed entities must disclose without delay to the Commissioner of the RCMP or the Director of CSIS the existence of property in their possession or control that they have reason to believe is owned, held or controlled by or on behalf of a listed person. In addition, you must also disclose, to the RCMP or CSIS, information about a transaction or proposed transaction in respect of such property.

According to section 1 and subsection 2(1) of the RIUNRST, a listed person is an individual or entity that is listed in the Schedule of the RIUNRST because there are reasonable grounds to believe that the individual or entity:

You can consult the list by viewing the Schedule in the RIUNRST.

To make a disclosure

Note: Under the Criminal Code and RIUNRST, if you know that a transaction is related to property owned or controlled by or on behalf of a terrorist group or listed person, you should not complete the transaction. 

3. How does a TPR differ from other reports submitted to FINTRAC?

TPRs differ from other reports that are submitted to FINTRAC because a transaction or attempted transaction does not have to occur for you to submit a TPR. Instead, it is the mere existence of property (such as a bank account) owned or controlled by or on behalf of a terrorist group or listed person that prompts your obligation to disclose to the RCMP or CSIS, and submit a TPR to FINTRAC.

TPRs contribute to Canada's anti-money laundering (AML) and anti-terrorist financing (ATF) regime as they provide information about property held by a terrorist group or a listed person that may not be found in other financial transaction reports. In addition, through FINTRAC's tactical analysis, TPRs can provide invaluable insight and assist in the detection of individuals and entities that may be involved in terrorist activity financing networks.

4. How do I submit TPRs?

You must submit TPRs to FINTRAC electronically by fax if you have the technical capability to do so. If you do not have the capability to submit by fax, you must send the report by mail.Footnote4

FINTRAC's TPR form can be printed from the reporting forms web page, or you can request a form to be faxed or mailed to you by calling FINTRAC at 1-866-346-8722.

Submit a TPR by fax to:

 1-866-226-2346

Submit a TPR by mail through regular or registered mail to:

Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada
Section A
234 Laurier Avenue West, 24th floor
Ottawa ON K1P 1H7
CANADA

There is no official acknowledgment of receipt when you submit a TPR to FINTRAC.

5. Are there other requirements associated to TPRs?

Suspicious Transaction Reports

It is important to remember that you must submit a Suspicious Transaction Report (STR) to FINTRAC if a transaction has taken place or was attempted and you have reasonable grounds to suspect that the transaction is related to the commission or attempted commission of a money laundering (ML) offence or a terrorist activity financing (TF) offence.Footnote5

If a transaction was attempted or completed, and it involved property that you know is owned or controlled by or on behalf of a terrorist group, or that you believe is owned or controlled by or on behalf of a listed person (for which you must submit a TPR), you should also submit an STR to FINTRAC. This is because you have reached the threshold of reasonable grounds to suspect that the transaction or attempted transaction is related to the commission or attempted commission of a terrorist activity financing offence.

Reasonable grounds to suspect means there is a possibility that an ML or TF offence has occurred based on an assessment of facts, context, and indicators, and you are able to present the reasons why it is suspicious without proof or verification. Having reasonable grounds to believe is a higher threshold and means there is a probability that an ML or TF offence has occurred, and you are able to present a set of verified facts that can be proven and that support this belief.

If you do not know or believe that the property in your possession or control is owned or controlled by or on behalf of a terrorist group or listed person, the requirement to disclose to the RCMP or CSIS is not triggered, and therefore, a TPR is not required. However, if you suspect that the property in your possession or control is owned or controlled by or on behalf of a terrorist group or listed person, you must submit an STR to FINTRAC if there was an attempted or completed transaction associated with this property.

For more information on your requirements for reporting STRs, refer to FINTRAC's guidance on What is a suspicious transaction report? and Reporting suspicious transactions to FINTRAC.

Compliance program

Your compliance program's policies and procedures must explain your process for submitting TPRs, including your process to identify terrorist property. They must also include processes to ensure TPRs are complete, accurate and submitted to FINTRAC immediately. You must also establish a compliance training program that ensures your employees, agents or other individuals authorized to act on your behalf are aware of your terrorist property reporting requirements. For more information, see the guidance on Compliance program requirements.

Records

You must keep a copy of any TPR you submit to FINTRAC for a period of at least five years from the day the report is sent.Footnote6 The copy of the report may be kept in a machine-readable or electronic format if a paper copy can be readily produced from it.Footnote7

Details and history

Published: November 2021

For assistance

If you have questions about your terrorist property reporting obligations, please contact FINTRAC by email at guidelines-lignesdirectrices@fintrac-canafe.gc.ca.

Date Modified: