Rules & documentation

By-laws, rules, standards and procedure documents are integral parts of the legal framework of the national payment systems that Payments Canada is legislated to establish and operate. They lay out the roles, responsibilities and obligations of our member financial institutions on the appropriate handling of payment items exchanged, cleared and settled via our payment systems. This includes requirements for participation in a payment system or scheme, procedures for the processing of payment items, and the requirements and timeframes for returning payment items, where eligible.

Payments Canada’s rules, standards and procedure documents are updated regularly and versions posted online are in force. You can contact Payments Canada for confirmation by e-mail at info@payments.ca.

Item Title Updated System
Standard 006
Specifications for MICR-Encoded Payment Items
Retail batch payment system
Standard 007
Standards for the use of transaction codes and return reason codes in AFT files
Retail batch payment system
Standard 010
Standards and Guidelines for the Standard Intermember Control Document
Retail batch payment system
Standard 013
Return Replacement Document Design Standard
Retail batch payment system
Standard 014
Clearing Replacement Document Design Standard
Retail batch payment system
Standard 015
Companion Document to the ANSI X9.100-187-2008, "Specifications for Electronic Exchange of Check and Image Data - Domestic"
Retail batch payment system
Standard 018
Payment Item Information Security Standard
Retail batch payment system
Standard 023
Technical Requirements Applicable to Electronic Data Interchange
Retail batch payment system