Retail Payment Activities Act regulations finalized

Building momentum towards modern payments in Canada. The Government of Canada published the final Retail Payment Activities Act (RPAA) Regulations on November 22, 2023.

Payments Canada commends the government, the Bank of Canada and their stakeholders for the effort and collaboration in developing this regulatory framework. The publication of the regulations, alongside the government’s recent commitment to amend the Canadian Payments Act (CP Act) in the 2023 Fall Economic Statement (FES), marks two critical modern payment milestones in Canada.

The RPAA regulations support the RPAA, a new legislative framework to regulate retail payment activities in Canada. The RPAA is designed to protect consumers by regulating payment service providers (PSPs) to safeguard funds and the financial system with operational risk requirements. PSPs must also register with the Bank of Canada to operate under the RPAA. After changes are made to the CP Act to expand Payments Canada’s membership, the RPAA will support the ability of PSPs who meet the requirements to gain Payments Canada membership and system participation.

The CP Act is the legislation that sets out Payments Canada’s role and responsibilities, including membership. Changes to the CP Act will expand the eligibility for Payments Canada’s membership and access to our systems to include PSPs, credit union locals and operators of financial market infrastructures that meet the legislative and regulatory requirements.

The federal government’s announcement of the RPAA regulations, in alignment with CP Act changes, strengthens the foundation for modern payments to thrive in Canada, including the forthcoming Real-Time Rail.