Important Update: New FINTRAC Regulations

Overview

The Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC) released a new set of regulations that requires Stripe (Communal's payment processor) to register as a money services business in Canada. This means they need to further verify the relationship between your Account Representatives and your nonprofit/charity. These regulations aim to help protect against online banking fraud and money laundering and will be a straightforward process for registered charities and non-profits.

What information will Stripe be verifying?

Stripe will be verifying your current list of directors as well as your registered non-profit status. The specific details are listed below in no particular order and are not applicable to every nonprofit (your Communal account will highlight which ones are required for your organization):

1. An image of the business registration

2. Directors of the organization and their:

   1. Legal name

   2. Email address

   3. Home address
   4. Position
   5. Phone number

3. Stripe Account Representative information:

   1. Legal name

   2. Email address
   3. Home address

   4. Date of Birth

   5. Position

   6. Identity

   7. Phone number

4. Contact information for each organization:

   1. Email address

   2. Business website

   3. Business phone number

   4. Customer support phone number

How do I provide this information?

On the admin dashboard of your Communal instance, you will see a red banner outlining the specific verification steps required for your organization. Clicking the link in the banner will direct you to where you can take action on each request. Note that after submitting the initial information, you may need to submit additional documents supporting your submission. This will occur if Stripe/FINTRAC cannot verify the information with a government registry. If you want to learn about common supporting documents, click here.

When do I have to provide this information and what is next?

If no action is taken, more reminders will be sent to all admins on your account throughout July and August. Eventually, if the steps are not completed, Stripe will stop payouts to your bank and online credit card transactions as per the schedule below:

• October 14th, 2024 - STRIPE PAYOUTS DEADLINE

  • As early as this date, Stripe will no longer issue payouts to your bank for online transactions captured through Communal.

• October 28th, 2024 - STRIPE PAYMENTS DEADLINE

  • As early as this date, Stripe will no longer process online credit card payments through Communal.