Application and Approval Guides

Incorporation Guides

• Guide for Incorporating Banks and Federally Regulated Trust and Loan Companies
• Guide for Incorporating Federally Regulated Insurance Companies

Continuance Guides

• Guide for Continuing a Body Corporate as a Bank or a Federally Regulated Trust or Loan Company
• Guide for Continuing a Local Cooperative Credit Society as a Federal Credit Union

Transaction Instructions

The purpose of the Transaction Instructions is to provide applicants seeking regulatory approval under the Bank Act, the Trust and Loan Companies Act, the Insurance Companies Act and the Cooperative Credit Association Act with OSFI's information filing requirements, as well as administrative guidance, as appropriate, to facilitate the application process.

The information requirements are intended to satisfy the typical application of each type. They have been derived from OSFI's considerable experience in assessing applications. OSFI anticipates that applicants who provide all information and material requested can expect a more timely assessment of their applications. Additional information may be requested as appropriate to the circumstances. There are two Indexes of Transaction Instructions:

• Transaction instructions for applications not subject to the deemed approval process (Index A)
• Transaction instructions for applications subject to the deemed approval process (Index DA)

Insurance Companies Forms and Guides

• Demutualization
• P&C Demutualization Guide
• Letters of credit
• OSFI Form 298 and Procedures

Other Forms and Guides

• Guide to Foreign Bank Branching
• Implementation of Support Principle to Replace Requesting Letters of Comfort
• Guide for Applications under Section 2 of the Information Technology Activities Regulations
• Approvals Related to OSFI Guidelines
• OSFI Security Information Form (XLS, 165 kB)

Service Standards / Fees

The Regulations Amending the Charges for Services Provided by the Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions Regulations 2002 (the Regulations) were registered and took effect on April 28, 2006, and are published in the May 17, 2006 issue of the Canada Gazette, Part II (SOR 2006/74). The Regulations reduce the number of service fees for services offered by OSFI from 52 to 14. The service fees that remain are those that are paid by non-federally regulated institutions such as new applicants, and those that are charged for rulings, interpretations, capital quality confirmations, and copies of corporate documents. The original Regulations and the amended Regulations can be found in the Canada Gazette Part II, Vol. 136, No. 21, SOR/2002-337 and the Canada Gazette Part II, Vol. 137, No. 18, SOR/2003-291 respectively.

In 2017, the Government of Canada introduced the Service Fees Act (the Act) to replace the User Fees Act. OSFI charges fees for services in accordance with this Act. The Act requires the implementation of service standards for the delivery of these services, along with a policy to remit fees to fee payers when standards are not met. The Act further provides for an automatic annual fee adjustment by the Consumer Price Index to ensure that fees keep pace with inflation.

• Letter to the Industry
• Service Standards
  • Services Subject to a Fee
  • Services Not Subject to a Fee
  • High-Volume Regulatory Authorizations
• Service Fees
• Remission Policy
• General questions and answers relating to OSFI Service Charges

Contact Details for Additional Information

All enquiries should be directed to:

Office of the Superintendent of Financial Institutions
Approvals
Regulatory Affairs Division
15th Floor, 255 Albert Street
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, K1A 0H2

Website: http://www.osfi-bsif.gc.ca
Email: approvals-approbations@osfi-bsif.gc.ca