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BSA/Patriot Act

  BSA/Patriot Act
This page collects guidance and other resources about Bank Secrecy Act (BSA) and USA PATRIOT Act (USAPA) compliance, including antimoney laundering and counter terrorist financing.
Guidance and Information - a collection of OTS guidance and information regarding BSA and USAPA matters.
Customer Identification Programs (CIPS) - Section 326 of the USAPA

CEO Ltr 202 - Bank Secrecy Act/USA PATRIOT Act Examination Procedures - Customer Identification Programs - 10 pages (07/28/2004) 293 KB Acrobat Document. Click for Reader.

CEO Ltr 188 - Frequently Asked Questions about Section 326 (Customer Identification Programs) - 9 pages (01/08/2004) 57 KB Acrobat Document. Click for Reader.

Disposition of Comments and Termination of Inquiry - Customer Identification Programs for Financial Institutions. Treasury announces there will be no changes to the Section 326 Final Rule. - 3 pages (10/28/2003) 41 KB Acrobat Document. Click for Reader.

CEO Ltr 175 - Customer Identification Program Implementation - 41 pages (05/09/2003) 359 KB Acrobat Document. Click for Reader.

73182 - Transactions and Customer Identification Programs; Final Rules and Proposed Rule - 25 pages (05/09/2003) 210 KB Acrobat Document. Click for Reader.

48930 - Customer Identification Programs - A Staff Summary and Answers to Questions - 9 pages (05/09/2003) 63 KB Acrobat Document. Click for Reader.

48931 - USA PATRIOT Act Preparedness Check-Up - 6 pages (05/09/2003) 55 KB Acrobat Document. Click for Reader.

General USAPA Guidance - Associations can also contact OTS's USAPA hotline at (202) 906-6012
FinCEN 314(a) Fact Sheet - FinCEN Provides Feedback on Section 314(a) Information Request Process (8/17/04) - 3 pages (08/27/2004) 85 KB Acrobat Document. Click for Reader.

FinCEN Ruling 2004-2 - Proper Completion of FinCEN Form 104 When Reporting Currency Exchanges - (6/30/04) - 3 pages (08/24/2004) 67 KB Acrobat Document. Click for Reader.

RB 18-6 - Supplemental Guidance on the Bank Secrecy Act and Anti-Money Laundering Programs - 3 pages (04/05/2004) 34 KB Acrobat Document. Click for Reader.

CEO Ltr 183 - USAPA Examination Procedures Covering Sections 313, 314 and 319 of the Act - 12 pages (10/20/2003) 60 KB Acrobat Document. Click for Reader.

CEO Ltr 166 - USA PATRIOT Act Update - 19 pages (08/06/2002) 152 KB Acrobat Document. Click for Reader.

48896 - Staff Summary of USA PATRIOT Act - 11 pages (03/20/2002) 50 KB Acrobat Document. Click for Reader.

Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) Information
REMINDER: As of July 1, 2003, you should now be using the new Suspicious Activity Report (SAR) form. FinCEN will not accept old versions of the SAR form after December 31, 2003. There is a link below to an online fill-in version of the new form. The new SAR form contains three changes from the previous version:
  1. Part III - The addition of two boxes to check for terrorist financing and identity theft;
  2. Part V - The addition of a statement indicating that tips on preparing and filing the SAR form are available on the FinCEN website;
  3. SAR instructions - The Safe Harbor provisions have been updated to incorporate USA PATRIOT changes.

We have provided links below to FinCEN and tips on filling out the new SAR Forms.

Unauthorized Disclosure of Suspicious Activity Reports (8/18/04) - 1 Page (08/24/2004) 65 KB Acrobat Document. Click for Reader.

SAR Activity Review - By the Numbers (Issue 2 - May 2004) - 7 pages (05/20/2004) 110 KB Acrobat Document. Click for Reader.

New SAR Form for Depository Instutitions - 5 pages (07/02/2003) 180 KB Acrobat Document. Click for Reader.

FinCEN's SAR Guidance Package (November 2003) - 2 pages (12/16/2003) 57 KB Acrobat Document. Click for Reader.

FinCEN's SAR Activity Review 7 - Trends, Tips & Issues (August 2004) - 77 pages (08/24/2004) 1,256 KB Acrobat Document. Click for Reader.

FinCEN's SAR Activity Review 6 - Trends, Tips & Issues (November 2003) - 97 pages (11/26/2003) 2,515 KB Acrobat Document. Click for Reader.

FinCEN's SAR Activity Review 5 - Trends, Tips & Issues (February 2003) - 106 pages (07/02/2003) 511 KB Acrobat Document. Click for Reader.

FinCEN's SAR Activity Review 4 - Trends, Tips & Issues (January 2002) - 97 pages (07/02/2003) 963 KB Acrobat Document. Click for Reader.

Recent Announcements - Recently issued notices or announcements relating to BSA/USAPA matters.
480151 - Treasury's Policy Statement on Accepting Accounts from Foreign Governments, Foreign Embassies and Foreign Political Figures - 1 Page (06/16/2004) 153 KB Acrobat Document. Click for Reader.

480150 - Interagency Advisory: Guidance on Accepting Accounts from Foreign Governments, Foreign Embassies and Foreign Political Figures - 2 pages (06/16/2004) 28 KB Acrobat Document. Click for Reader.

480148 - Interagency Advisory: Federal Court Reaffirms Safe Harbor for Financial Institutions Filing Suspicious Activity Reports (SARs) - 3 pages (05/27/2004) 127 KB Acrobat Document. Click for Reader.

480146 - Treasury Proposes Imposing Special Measure Against Syrian Bank (May 18, 2004) - 6 pages (05/20/2004) 152 KB Acrobat Document. Click for Reader.

480147 - FinCEN Director Fox's statement on Unauthorized SAR Disclosures (April 20, 2004) - 1 Page (05/20/2004) 68 KB Acrobat Document. Click for Reader.

480145 - Treasury Imposes Special Measures Against Burma and Two Burmese Banks - 11 pages (04/15/2004) 102 KB Acrobat Document. Click for Reader.

480143 - Treasury Designates Burma and Two Burmese Banks to be of "Primary Money Laundering Concern" - 1 Page (11/26/2003) 6 KB

48938 - Treasury Announces There Will Be No Changes to the Section 326 Final Rule - 1 Page (09/23/2003) 5 KB

48937 - U.S. Designates Five Charities Funding Hamas and Six Senior Hamas Leaders as Terrorist Entities - 1 Page (09/11/2003) 46 KB

Links
Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) (Link to an External Website) (05/05/2003)

Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC) (Link to an External Website) (05/05/2003)

Forms - A link to FinCEN?s page of BSA forms, including the Suspicious Activity Report form and the Currency Transaction Report form. (Link to an External Website) (05/05/2003)

 

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