Finance Canada is advising that the federal government’s new Anti-Terrorism Bill amends the Criminal Code to establish new criminal offences related to the financing of terrorism.

Along with the new offenses, the bill includes changes to Canada’s existing anti-money laundering regime that will both guard against the abuse of the financial system by terrorist groups, and provide law enforcement authorities and the Canadian Security Intelligence Service with information about terrorist financing activities.

The changes in the bill broaden the scope of the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering ) Act, including the mandate of the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (Fintrac) , to address both money laundering and terrorist financing offences.

In general, the changes to the PCMLA will require financial intermediaries to report suspicions of terrorist financing offences to Fintrac, broaden Fintrac’s role to include the analysis of these reports and the disclosure of key identifying information to law enforcement authorities and CSIS, and allow Fintrac to share key identifying information about terrorist financing offences with its international counterparts.

The changes will require financial intermediaries to report to Fintrac any financial transaction suspected on reasonable grounds to be related to a terrorist financing offence. Financial intermediaries will also make a report to Fintrac if they know that they are in possession of terrorist assets or have knowledge of a financial transaction involving such assets.

If Fintrac has reasonable grounds to suspect that key identifying information from the reports would be relevant to investigating a terrorist financing offence, it must disclose that information to law enforcement authorities. Fintrac must also disclose key identifying information to CSIS. CSIS can apply for a court order in order to obtain additional information from Fintrac for the investigation of threats to the security of Canada.

Fintrac will also have authority to share key identifying information with its international counterparts if it suspects that the information would be relevant to the investigation of a terrorist financing offence.