Budget Implementation Act, 2023, No. 1 (S.C. 2023, c. 26)
Full Document:
- HTMLFull Document: Budget Implementation Act, 2023, No. 1 (Accessibility Buttons available) |
- PDFFull Document: Budget Implementation Act, 2023, No. 1 [3565 KB]
Assented to 2023-06-22
PART 4Various Measures (continued)
DIVISION 11991, c. 46Bank Act (continued)
Amendments to the Act (continued)
130 (1) The portion of section 627.49 of the Act before paragraph (a) is replaced by the following:
Marginal note:Requirements
627.49 The external complaints body shall
(2) Paragraphs 627.49(b) to (d) of the Act are replaced by the following:
(b) make its services available across Canada in both official languages and offer those services free of charge to persons who make complaints to it;
(c) establish policies, procedures and terms of reference that are satisfactory to the Commissioner pertaining to, among other things, dealing with complaints and the consultation, at least once a year, of its member institutions and consumers for the purpose of raising concerns about the external complaints body;
(c.1) establish the manner of calculating, to the satisfaction of the Commissioner, the fees it charges to each of its member institutions for its services;
(c.2) make information available to consumers about their rights and responsibilities in relation to the external complaints handling regime, respond to their inquiries and requests for information and offer them assistance in making a complaint;
(d) inform the Commissioner in writing within 30 days after the day on which it determines that a complaint raises a potential systemic issue;
(3) Paragraph 627.49(e) of the French version of the Act is replaced by the following:
e) dans les trente jours qui suivent la date à laquelle il reçoit une plainte, aviser l’auteur de la plainte lorsque, selon lui, la plainte, ou toute partie de celle-ci, ne relève pas de son mandat, lui en fournir par écrit les raisons pour lesquelles elle n’en relève pas et lui fournir le nom de toute entité à qui il peut présenter la plainte;
(4) Paragraph 627.49(g) of the Act is replaced by the following:
(g) impartially deal with complaints referred to in paragraph 627.43(1)(a) that have not been resolved by its member institutions to the satisfaction of the persons who made the complaints or that have not been dealt with within the prescribed period referred to in that paragraph;
(5) Paragraph 627.49(h) of the French version of the Act is replaced by the following:
h) au plus tard cent vingt jours après la date à laquelle il dispose de l’ensemble des renseignements nécessaires à l’examen de la plainte, présenter par écrit aux parties à la plainte une recommandation finale;
(6) Section 627.49 of the Act is amended by adding the following after paragraph (h):
(h.1) without delay, inform the Commissioner in writing of cases in which an institution does not comply with a final recommendation;
(7) The portion of paragraph 627.49(i) of the French version of the Act before subparagraph (i) is replaced by the following:
i) dans les quatre-vingt-dix jours suivant la date à laquelle il présente une recommandation finale, rendre accessible sans frais sur son site Web un résumé de la décision, lequel comprend notamment :
(8) Section 627.49 of the Act is amended by adding the following after paragraph (i):
(i.1) within 60 days after the end of each quarter, submit to the Commissioner, in a form satisfactory to the Commissioner,
(i) in relation to all investigations completed during the quarter, a copy of the record of the complaint, and
(ii) any prescribed information;
(i.2) within 60 days after the end of each quarter, meet with the Commissioner to discuss, among other things, complaints, operations and market trends and issues with the potential to impact consumers;
(9) The portion of paragraph 627.49(j) of the Act before subparagraph (i) is replaced by the following:
(j) within 135 days after the end of each financial year, file a written report with the Commissioner on the performance of its functions and activities for that year, which report is to include
(10) Clause 627.49(j)(i)(B) of the Act is replaced by the following:
(B) all sources of funding for its functions and activities, including the fees charged to each of its member institutions for its services and the manner in which those fees are calculated, and
(11) Subparagraph 627.49(j)(iii) of the French version of the Act is replaced by the following:
(iii) pour chacune de ses institutions membres, le nombre et la nature des plaintes reçues ainsi que le nombre de plaintes qui, selon lui, relevaient de son mandat, le nombre de recommandations finales présentées aux parties et le nombre de plaintes qui, selon lui, ont été réglées à la satisfaction de leurs auteurs,
(12) Subparagraph 627.49(j)(v) of the French version of the Act is replaced by the following:
(v) le nombre de plaintes reçues qui, selon lui, ne relevaient pas de son mandat et les raisons pour lesquelles elles n’en relevaient pas,
(13) Paragraph 627.49(j) of the Act is amended by adding the following after subparagraph (v):
(v.1) the number of complaints for which an institution did not comply with a final recommendation,
(14) Subparagraph 627.49(j)(vii) of the French version of the Act is replaced by the following:
(vii) la compensation moyenne et la compensation totale qui a été accordée relativement aux plaintes reçues qui, selon lui, relevaient de son mandat;
(15) Section 627.49 of the Act is amended by adding the following after paragraph (j):
(j.1) meet with the Commissioner annually;
(16) Paragraphs 627.49(l) and (m) of the Act are replaced by the following:
(l) submit, every five years, to an evaluation of the performance of its functions and activities that is conducted, at the discretion of the Commissioner, by the Commissioner or a third party in accordance with terms of reference that are established by the external complaints body in consultation with the Commissioner; and
(m) meet any prescribed requirement.
131 Sections 627.5 to 627.52 of the Act are replaced by the following:
Marginal note:Provision of information — external complaints body
627.52 An institution shall provide the external complaints body with all information in its possession or control that relates to a complaint in respect of the institution without delay after the external complaints body notifies it that the complaint has been received.
132 Paragraph 627.65(b) of the Act is replaced by the following:
(b) the name of the external complaints body and the manner in which that body may be contacted; and
133 Subsection 627.998 of the Act is amended by adding “and” at the end of paragraph (n) and by replacing paragraphs (o) and (p) with the following:
(o) respecting the requirements to be met by the external complaints body.
134 Subsections 659(1.1) to (1.3) of the Act are replaced by the following:
Marginal note:Special audit
(1.1) The Commissioner may direct that a special audit be made in accordance with any terms and conditions that he or she considers appropriate if, in the opinion of the Commissioner, it is required for the purposes of the administration of the Financial Consumer Agency of Canada Act and the consumer provisions, and may appoint for that purpose
(a) with respect to a bank or an authorized foreign bank, a firm of accountants qualified under subsection 315(1); and
(b) with respect to the external complaints body, a firm of accountants, as defined in section 313.
Marginal note:Report to Commissioner
(1.2) If a bank, an authorized foreign bank or the external complaints body is the subject of a special audit, it shall provide the Commissioner with the results of the audit.
Marginal note:Expenses payable
(1.3) The expenses incurred in respect of any special audit are payable by the bank, the authorized foreign bank or the external complaints body that is the subject of the audit.
135 Section 661 of the Act is replaced by the following:
Marginal note:Compliance agreement
661 The Commissioner may enter into an agreement, called a “compliance agreement”, with a bank, an authorized foreign bank or the external complaints body for the purposes of implementing any measure that is designed so as to further compliance by it with the consumer provisions.
136 Subsections 661.1(2) to (4) of the Act are replaced by the following:
Marginal note:Directions — external complaints body
(1.1) If, in the opinion of the Commissioner, the external complaints body fails, or there are reasonable grounds to believe that it will fail, to comply with a compliance agreement or any of paragraphs 627.49(b) to (m) or to discharge its functions and perform its activities in a manner that is consistent with the purpose set out in section 627.471, the Commissioner may direct the external complaints body to comply with them or to so discharge its functions and perform its activities and to perform any act that in the opinion of the Commissioner is necessary to do so.
Marginal note:Opportunity for representations
(2) Subject to subsection (3), no direction shall be issued under subsection (1) or (1.1) unless the bank, authorized foreign bank or person or the external complaints body is provided with a reasonable opportunity to make representations in respect of the matter.
Marginal note:Temporary direction
(3) If, in the opinion of the Commissioner, the length of time required for representations to be made under subsection (2) might be prejudicial to the public interest, the Commissioner may make a temporary direction with respect to the matters referred to in subsection (1) or (1.1) that has effect for a period of not more than 15 days.
Marginal note:Continued effect
(4) A temporary direction under subsection (3) continues to have effect after the end of the 15-day period referred to in that subsection if no representations are made to the Commissioner within that period or, if representations have been made, the Commissioner notifies the bank, authorized foreign bank, person or external complaints body that the Commissioner is not satisfied that there are sufficient grounds for revoking the direction.
137 Subsection 661.2(2) of the Act is replaced by the following:
Marginal note:Court enforcement — external complaints body
(1.1) If the external complaints body contravenes or fails to comply with a compliance agreement, any of paragraphs 627.49(b) to (m) or a direction made under subsection 661.1(1.1) or (3), the Commissioner may, in addition to any other action that may be taken under this Act, apply to a court for an order requiring the external complaints body to comply with the compliance agreement or the direction, cease the contravention or do any thing that is required to be done, and on the application the court may so order and make any other order it thinks fit.
Marginal note:Appeal
(2) An appeal from a decision of a court under subsection (1) or (1.1) lies in the same manner, and to the same court, as an appeal from any other order of the court.
138 Section 974 of the Act is replaced by the following:
Marginal note:Not statutory instruments
974 An instrument issued or made under this Act and directed to a single bank, bank holding company, authorized foreign bank or person, other than a regulation made under paragraph 627.998(o) or an order referred to in section 499, is not a statutory instrument for the purposes of the Statutory Instruments Act.
Transitional Provisions
Marginal note:Definitions
139 (1) The following definitions apply in this section.
- former external complaints body
former external complaints body means an external complaints body as defined in section 2 of the Bank Act as it read before the day on which section 128 of this Act comes into force. (ancien organisme externe de traitement des plaintes)
- new external complaints body
new external complaints body means the body corporate designated under subsection 627.48(1) of the Bank Act, as amended by section 129 of this Act. (nouvel organisme externe de traitement des plaintes)
Marginal note:Revocation of approval
(2) Any approval given to a former external complaints body under subsection 627.48(1) of the Bank Act, as it read immediately before the day on which section 129 of this Act comes into force, is revoked on the later of the day on which the designation of the new external complaints body takes effect and the day on which the former external complaints body resolves every complaint pending before it.
Marginal note:Application before designation
(3) On the day on which section 129 of this Act comes into force, sections 627.48 and 627.49 of the Bank Act, as they read immediately before that day, continue to apply in respect of former external complaints bodies until the day on which the designation of the new external complaints body takes effect.
Marginal note:Application on designation
(4) On the day on which the designation of the new external complaints body takes effect,
(a) unless otherwise specified by the Commissioner, a former external complaints body shall continue the resolution of any complaint pending before it;
(b) sections 627.48 and 627.49 of the Bank Act, as they read immediately before the day on which section 129 of this Act comes into force, continue to apply for the purposes of paragraph (a); and
(c) the new external complaints body shall resolve all complaints that are not pending before any former external complaints body.
- Date modified: