From: AlanBaggett@volcanomail.com   
      
   Revenue Canada cracks down on electronic funds transfers: CRA SOTW   
      
   Nestor E. Arellano    
   @nestorarellano    
   Published: January 8th, 2015   
      
   Banks and other financial intermediaries have to report to the CRA any   
   incoming and outgoing electronic funds transfers of $10,000 or more   
      
   The Canada Revenue Agency announced that it is focusing on electronic funds   
   transfers (EFT) in its campaign to crack down on international tax evasion.   
      
   Effective this month, banks, credit unions, crown corporations that accept   
   deposits, financial service cooperatives and other financial intermediaries   
   have to report to the CRA any incoming and outgoing EFTs of $10,000 or more.   
      
   The CRA said these reports will allow it to better identify "higher risk   
   taxpayers and file" and in turn identify people involved in what the CRA calls   
   "international aggressive tax avoidance" and attempts to hide income and   
   assets abroad.   
      
   An EFT is defined as an electronic exchange or transfer of money from one   
   account to another, either within a single financial institution or across   
   multiple institutions, through computer-based systems. In recent years this   
   method of moving funds have    
   been linked to tax evasion and money laundering activities and even operations   
   that fund terrorist groups.   
      
   The new reporting requirement are the same as those for reports currently   
   provided to the Financial Transaction and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada   
   (FINTRAC). Financial intermediaries will have to submit one report to both   
   FINTRAC and CRA at the same    
   time.   
      
   ETF's must be filed no later than five working days after the day the   
   transferred occurred.   
      
   FINTRACT was established with the passage of the Proceeds of Crime (Money   
   Laundering) and Terrorism Financing Act. The act imposes reporting and   
   recording requirements on firms including, insurance companies, money service   
   businesses, casinos and    
   independent agents and brokers.   
      
   Back in 2013, FINTRACT came under fire from the Office of the Privacy   
   Commissioner of Canada (OPC) for collecting more personal information on   
   Canadians than is necessary. Then Privacy Commissioner Jennifer Stoddart made   
   a statement saying that FINTRACT    
   made "limited progress" in addressing earlier recommendations by a previous   
   OPC audit that FINTRACT ensure the personal information it collects in kept at   
   an "absolute minimum."   
      
   The information reported must include: the transmission of instructions for a   
   transfer of funds through any electronic, magnetic or optical device,   
   telephone or computer made at the request of the client.   
      
   Information collected under the measure will be safeguarded by the CRA. The   
   agency said the data will only be used for the purposes for which it is   
   collected and swill be subject to strict security protocols and stored in a   
   segregated database.   
      
      
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   Miss a Tax Tale Miss a lot!   
   Visit the CRA SOTW Library at http://canada.revenue.agency.angelfire.com   
      
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   Alan Baggett - http://www.taxcollectorsbible.com/ - Tax Collector's Bible   
      
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