Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act

Marginal note:Disclosure by Centre prohibited

• 55 (1) Subject to subsections (3) and (6.1), sections 52, 53.1, 55.1, 56.1 and 56.2, subsection 58(1) and sections 65 to 65.1 and 68.1 of this Act and to subsection 12(1) of the Privacy Act, the Centre shall not disclose the following:

  • (a) information set out in a report made under section 7;

  • (a.1) information set out in a report made under section 7.1;

  • (b) information set out in a report made under section 9;

  • (b.1) information set out in a report referred to in section 9.1;

  • (b.2) information provided under sections 11.12 to 11.3 except for identifying information referred to in subsection 54.1(3);

  • (c) information set out in a report made under subsection 12(1), whether or not it is completed, or section 20;

  • (d) information voluntarily provided to the Centre about suspicions of money laundering or of the financing of terrorist activities;

  • (e) information prepared by the Centre from information referred to in paragraphs (a) to (d); or

  • (f) any other information, other than publicly available information, obtained in the administration or enforcement of this Part.

• Marginal note:Disclosure by others prohibited

  (2) The prohibition in subsection (1) also applies to the following persons:

  • (a) any person who, in the course of exercising powers or performing duties or functions under this Part, obtained or has or had access to information referred to in subsection (1); and

  • (b) any person or an employee of any person with whom the Centre enters into a contract, memorandum of understanding or other agreement for the provision of goods or services.

• Marginal note:Disclosure of designated information

  (3) If the Centre, on the basis of its analysis and assessment under paragraph 54(1)(c), has reasonable grounds to suspect that designated information would be relevant to investigating or prosecuting a money laundering offence or a terrorist activity financing offence, the Centre shall disclose the information to

  • (a) the appropriate police force;

  • (b) the Canada Revenue Agency, if the Centre also has reasonable grounds to suspect that the information would be relevant to investigating or prosecuting an offence of obtaining or attempting to obtain a rebate, refund or credit to which a person or entity is not entitled, or of evading or attempting to evade paying taxes or duties imposed under an Act of Parliament administered by the Minister of National Revenue;

  • (b.01) the Agence du revenu du Québec, if the Centre also has reasonable grounds to suspect that the information would be relevant to investigating or prosecuting an offence of obtaining or attempting to obtain a rebate, refund or credit to which a person or entity is not entitled, or of evading or attempting to evade paying taxes imposed under an Act of Parliament or of the legislature of Quebec administered by the Minister of Revenue of Quebec;

  • (b.1) the Canada Border Services Agency, if the Centre also has reasonable grounds to suspect that the information is relevant to an offence of evading or attempting to evade paying taxes or duties imposed under an Act of Parliament administered by the Agency;

  • (c) the Canada Revenue Agency, if the Centre also has reasonable grounds to suspect that the information is relevant to determining

    • (i) whether a registered charity, as defined in subsection 248(1) of the Income Tax Act, has ceased to comply with the requirements of that Act for its registration as such,

    • (ii) whether a person or entity that the Centre has reasonable grounds to suspect has applied to be a registered charity, as defined in subsection 248(1) of the Income Tax Act, is eligible to be registered as such, or

    • (iii) whether a person or entity that the Centre has reasonable grounds to suspect may apply to be a registered charity, as defined in subsection 248(1) of the Income Tax Act,

      • (A) has made or will make available any resources, directly or indirectly, to a listed entity as defined in subsection 83.01(1) of the Criminal Code,

      • (B) has made available any resources, directly or indirectly, to an entity as defined in subsection 83.01(1) of the Criminal Code that was at that time, and continues to be, engaged in terrorist activities as defined in that subsection or activities in support of them, or

      • (C) has made or will make available any resources, directly or indirectly, to an entity as defined in subsection 83.01(1) of the Criminal Code that engages or will engage in terrorist activities as defined in that subsection or activities in support of them;

  • (d) the Canada Border Services Agency, if the Centre also determines that the information is relevant to determining whether a person is a person described in sections 34 to 42 of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act or is relevant to an offence under any of sections 91, 117 to 119, 126 or 127 of that Act;

  • (e) the Canada Border Services Agency, if the Centre also determines that the information is relevant to investigating or prosecuting an offence of smuggling or attempting to smuggle goods subject to duties or an offence related to the importation or exportation of goods that are prohibited, controlled or regulated under the Customs Act or under any other Act of Parliament;

  • (f) the Communications Security Establishment, if the Centre also determines that the information is relevant to the mandate of the Communications Security Establishment referred to in paragraph 273.64(1)(a) of the National Defence Act;

  • (f.1) the Competition Bureau, if the Centre also has reasonable grounds to suspect that the information would be relevant to investigating or prosecuting an offence under the Competition Act, the Consumer Packaging and Labelling Act, the Precious Metals Marking Act or the Textile Labelling Act or an attempt to commit such an offence; and

  • (g) an agency or body that administers the securities legislation of a province, if the Centre also has reasonable grounds to suspect that the information would be relevant to investigating or prosecuting an offence under that legislation.

• Marginal note:Exception

  (3.1) Paragraph (3)(b) or (b.1) does not apply in respect of an offence relating to taxes or duties imposed under a prescribed Act or a prescribed portion of an Act.

• (4) and (5) [Repealed, 2001, c. 41, s. 67]

• Marginal note:Recording of reasons for decision

  (5.1) The Centre shall record in writing the reasons for all decisions to disclose information made under subsection (3).

• Marginal note:Exception

  (6) A person may disclose any information referred to in subsection (1) if the disclosure is necessary for the purpose of exercising powers or performing duties and functions under this Part.

• Marginal note:Publication

  (6.1) After a person has been determined by a court to be guilty of a money laundering offence or a terrorist activity financing offence, or has been determined by a foreign court to be guilty of an offence that is substantially similar to either of those offences, whether on acceptance of a plea of guilty or on a finding of guilt, the Centre may, if it has disclosed designated information under subsection (3) with respect to the investigation or prosecution of the offence, make public the fact that it made such a disclosure.

• Marginal note:Definition of designated information

  (7) For the purposes of subsection (3), designated information means, in respect of a financial transaction, an attempted financial transaction or an importation or exportation of currency or monetary instruments,

  • (a) the name of any person or entity that is involved in the transaction, attempted transaction, importation or exportation or of any person or entity acting on their behalf, as well as the occupation or business and gender of those persons and the business of those entities;

  • (b) the name and address of the place of business where the transaction occurred or the address of the customs office where the importation or exportation occurred, and the date the transaction, importation or exportation occurred;

  • (c) the amount and type of currency or monetary instruments involved or, in the case of a transaction, if no currency or monetary instruments are involved, the value of the transaction or the value of the funds that are the subject of the transaction;

  • (d) in the case of a transaction, the transaction number and the account number, if any;

  • (e) the name, address, electronic mail address and telephone number of each partner, director or officer of an entity referred to in paragraph (a), and the address and telephone number of its principal place of business;

  • (f) any other similar identifying information that may be prescribed for the purposes of this section;

  • (g) the details of the criminal record of a person or entity referred to in paragraph (a) and any criminal charges laid against them that the Centre considers relevant in the circumstances;

  • (h) the relationships suspected by the Centre on reasonable grounds to exist between any persons or entities referred to in paragraph (a) and any other persons or entities;

  • (i) the financial interest that a person or entity referred to in paragraph (a) has in the entity on whose behalf the transaction was made or attempted, or on whose behalf the importation or exportation was made;

  • (j) the name of the person or entity referred to in paragraph (a) suspected by the Centre on reasonable grounds to direct, either directly or indirectly, the transaction, attempted transaction, importation or exportation;

  • (k) the grounds on which a person or entity made a report under section 7 about the transaction or attempted transaction and any action taken by the person or entity as a result of the suspicions that led them to make the report;

  • (l) the number and types of reports on which a disclosure is based;

  • (m) the number and categories of persons or entities that made those reports;

  • (n) indicators of a money laundering offence or a terrorist activity financing offence related to the transaction, attempted transaction, importation or exportation;

  • (o) information about the importation or exportation sent to the Centre under Part 2;

  • (p) if the transaction is carried out by means of an electronic funds transfer as defined in the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Regulations, information about the transaction that is contained in a report made under section 9 and that is remittance information as defined by the Society for Worldwide Interbank Financial Telecommunication;

  • (q) information about the transaction, attempted transaction, importation or exportation, received by the Centre from an institution or agency under an agreement or arrangement referred to in section 56, that constitutes the institution’s or agency’s reasonable grounds to suspect that the information would be relevant to investigating or prosecuting a money laundering offence or a terrorist activity financing offence, or an offence that is substantially similar to either offence;

  • (r) the name, address, electronic mail address and telephone number of every trustee and every known beneficiary and settlor of a trust referred to in paragraph (a);

  • (s) the name, address, electronic mail address and telephone number of each person who owns or controls, directly or indirectly, 25% or more of an entity referred to in paragraph (a), other than a trust; and

  • (t) information respecting the ownership, control and structure of an entity referred to in paragraph (a).