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Register your money services business or your foreign money services business

FINTRAC does not charge registration fees.

Certain persons or entities are not eligible to register and therefore cannot operate a money services business or foreign money services business. For more information, see Who is not eligible to register as a money services business or act as an agent or mandatary

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Money services business

Money services businesses operating in Canada must register with FINTRAC before they begin to operate. Even if you are registered or licensed as a money services business with a province or territory, you must still register with FINTRAC.

To register

Step 1:

Complete the Pre-registration form: Request to register a money services business or foreign money services business. You will be contacted by a FINTRAC compliance officer and provided with a registration form to complete.

Step 2:

To complete your registration form, you will need the following information, if applicable:

You must also provide the following information with your registration form:

Criminal record checks

You must provide FINTRAC with a criminal record check for the following individuals (or equivalent) within your entity:

Note: Equivalent refers to individuals with roles and responsibilities similar to those of a chief executive officer, president or director, regardless of their official titles.

If you operate your business yourself (for example, you are a sole proprietor), you must provide this document about yourself.

Criminal record checks must be issued by a competent authority of the country in which the person resides, or by an entity or authority that is authorized to issue the document within that country. The document must be issued no more than 6 months before the application for registration is submitted.

Translation of the criminal record checks

If the document is in a language other than English or French, it must be translated into English or French and attested to by a certified translator. You must obtain and provide the translation before you register.

A certified translator is an individual that holds the title of professional certified translator granted either by a Canadian provincial or territorial association or body that is competent under Canadian provincial or territorial law to issue such certification, or by an organization or body in a foreign state that is competent under the laws of that state to do so.

You must provide the Statement of certification. FINTRAC requires proof that the translated document was issued from a competent and certified translator. This proof can be a certificate of authenticity signed by the certified translator and containing the translator's stamp or the translator's membership number.

The following is a list of Canadian translation associations that can help provide access to certified translators. This is not an exhaustive list:

Documents confirming your existence and governance

You must provide documents to confirm your existence and disclose the ownership, control, and structure of your entity.

If your business is a corporation, you must provide the following:

If your business is an entity other than a corporation, you must provide the following:

Note: We recommend that you scan all your documents into one PDF file. If the documents are illegible or unclear, FINTRAC will not be able to process your registration form and will request that you resubmit the documents.

Step 3:

Once completed, you will be required to submit your registration form and other required information to FINTRAC using the secure Canada Post Connect message that will be provided by a FINTRAC compliance officer during the time of the registration process.

Foreign money services business

Foreign money services businesses that direct and provide services to clients in Canada must register with FINTRAC before they begin to operate. Even if you are registered or licensed as a foreign money services business with a province or territory, you must still register with FINTRAC.

To register

Step 1:

Complete the Pre-registration form: Request to register a money services business or foreign money services business. You will be contacted by a FINTRAC compliance officer and provided with a registration form to complete.

Step 2:

To complete your registration form, you will need the following information, if applicable:

You must also provide the following information with your registration form:

Criminal record checks

You must provide FINTRAC with a criminal record check for the following individuals (or equivalent) within your entity:

Note: Equivalent refers to individuals with roles and responsibilities similar to those of a chief executive officer, president or director, regardless of their official titles.

If you operate your business yourself (for example, you are a sole proprietor), you must provide this document about yourself.

Criminal record checks must be issued by a competent authority of the country in which the person resides, or by an entity or authority that is authorized to issue the document within that country. The document must be issued no more than 6 months before the application for registration is submitted.

Translation of the criminal record checks

If the document is in a language other than English or French, it must be translated into English or French and attested to by a certified translator. You must obtain and provide the translation before you register.

A certified translator is an individual that holds the title of professional certified translator granted either by a Canadian provincial or territorial association or body that is competent under Canadian provincial or territorial law to issue such certification, or by an organization or body in a foreign state that is competent under the laws of that state to do so.

You must provide the Statement of certification. FINTRAC requires proof that the translated document was issued from a competent and certified translator. This proof can be a certificate of authenticity signed by the certified translator and containing the translator's stamp or the translator's membership number.

The following is a list of Canadian associations. This is not an exhaustive list:

Retention: At least 5 years after the day on which you obtain the document.

Note: We recommend that you scan your three documents into one PDF file for your submission. If the documents are illegible or unclear, FINTRAC will not be able to process your registration form and will request that you resubmit the documents.

To submit your document, FINTRAC recommends submitting 1 PDF file containing the following 3 documents:

Documents confirming your existence and governance

You must provide documents to confirm your existence and disclose the ownership, control, and structure of your entity.

If your business is a corporation, you must provide the following:

If your business is an entity other than a corporation, you must provide the following:

Note: We recommend that you scan all your documents into one PDF file for your submission. If the documents are illegible or unclear, FINTRAC will not be able to process your registration form and will request that you resubmit the documents.

Representative for service in Canada

Foreign money services businesses must designate a representative for service in Canada and provide FINTRAC with the name and contact details of this person. This representative must reside in Canada and be authorized to accept, on behalf of your business, FINTRAC related notices and inquiries.

Note that it is the foreign money services businesses, and not the representative for service in Canada, who is responsible for meeting the obligations under the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act (the Act) and associated Regulations.

Note: Financial entities (such as banks) may ask you questions regarding your business and whether or not you are registered with FINTRAC. Under the Act and associated Regulations, financial entities must ensure that foreign money services businesses for which they open an account, or with which they have a correspondent banking relationship, are registered with FINTRAC.

Step 3:

Once completed, you will be required to submit your registration form and other required information to FINTRAC using the secure Canada Post Connect message that will be provided by a FINTRAC compliance officer during the time of the registration process.

Registration records

Money services businesses and foreign money services businesses must keep certain records, including records related to their registration submission to FINTRAC such as:

Retention: At least five years after the day on which the registration application is submitted to FINTRAC.

If the information is submitted with a notification (for example, following changes or newly obtained information), a copy of these documents must be kept for at least five years from the day on which the notification is sent.

After you submit your registration form

We will process your form and will send you one of the following:

Once your registration form is approved, some of the information provided will be made available to the public and displayed on FINTRAC's Money Services Business Registry.

If you do not register, you may be assessed penalties or incur other consequences.

Once you are registered with FINTRAC, you must keep your registration information up to date and renew your registration as required. If you fail to do so, you may be assessed penalties or incur other consequences.

For more details, consult: Answer clarification requests, Update, Renew or Cancel your registration.

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