Administrative Monetary Penalties

Violations are classified by the PCMLTF Regulations as “Minor”, “Serious” or “Very Serious”, and carry maximum penalties of $1,000, $100,000 and $500,000 respectively. The AMPs program also has maximum penalties for individuals and entities (e.g. corporations), as reflected in the list below:

The limits above apply to each violation, and multiple violations can result in total fines that exceed these limits. A list of violations is available on the Justice Canada Web site: http://laws.justice.gc.ca/en/showtdm/cr/SOR-2007-292.

As stipulated by the governing legislation and regulations, FINTRAC considers the following three criteria in determining the penalty amount:

1. the harm caused by the violation(s);
2. the compliance history of the reporting entity; and
3. the non-punitive nature of an administrative penalty.

FINTRAC assesses “harm” in relation to the degree to which the violation obstructs Canada's ability to detect and deter money laundering and terrorist financing. The resulting “harm” of a violation can vary within the “Minor”, Serious” and “Very Serious” classifications. Therefore, the level of harm is assessed for each violation and is used to identify the base penalty amount.

FINTRAC looks back at 5 years compliance history of reporting entities to determine whether the base penalty amount should be adjusted. A positive compliance history results in a penalty amount reduction; a negative compliance history results in an amount increase. Compliance history depends on past indicators of compliance and non-compliance. Examples of these indicators can include the results and findings of past examinations, whether information requested by FINTRAC has been properly submitted, or the reporting entity's AMPs history.

Finally, the purpose of the AMPs program is to encourage compliance with the PCMLTFA, rather than to punish non-compliance. As such, FINTRAC may reduce the penalty amount to underscore the non-punitive criteria. To do so, FINTRAC considers all available financial indicators pertaining to the reporting entity. In instances where few or no financial indicators are available, the size of the reporting entity is given more weight in FINTRAC's assessment to ensure that the penalty amount is not punitive.

Upon receiving a Notice of Violation, the reporting entity can make payment by completing the remittance form and submitting it with the payment in Canadian funds to:

All payments should be made out to the Receiver General of Canada and be in the form of a certified cheque, money order, or draft note.

It is possible to request a review of an administrative monetary penalty. This can be done by making representations to the Director of FINTRAC within 30 days of receiving a notice of violation.

FINTRAC will make public on this Web site a list of the administrative monetary penalties that meet one of the following criteria:

1. A Serious or Very Serious violation has been committed.
2. The total penalty is equal to $10,000 or more.

FINTRAC will publish the name of the person or entity that committed the violation, the nature of the violation, the city where the business is located, and the amount of the penalty.

You can view the public list of administrative penalties issued by FINTRAC through the Public Notice link.