Rules & documentation

Rule amendments support expanded membership and access to critical national infrastructure

These changes took effect on February 9, 2026.

A series of amendments to the Automated Clearing Settlement System (ACSS) rules are now in effect. These changes, which became effective on February 9, 2026, are designed to align with recent legislative updates to the Canadian Payments Act (CP Act) and refine and enhance operations and processing procedures.

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
Rule B1
Intermember Exchange and Clearing at Regional Exchange Points​​​
Retail batch payment system
Rule B2
Manual Preparation of Clearing Logs
Retail batch payment system
Rule B3
Regional Exchange Points - Composition and Representation
Retail batch payment system
Rule B4
Formation, Membership and Management of Regional Clearing Associations
Retail batch payment system
Rule B5
Intermember Cheque Exchanges
Retail batch payment system
Rule B9
Manual Balancing and Settlement
Retail batch payment system
Rule B10
Tracing, Clearing Errors and Use of Photocopies
Retail batch payment system
Rule B13
Procedures for Joint Air/Ground Courier Arrangements
Retail batch payment system
Rule C1
Cross-border Arrangements
Retail batch payment system
Rule D1
Direct Clearer / Group Clearer Requirements
Retail batch payment system
Rule D2
Clearing Agent Requirements
Retail batch payment system
Rule D3
Indirect Clearer Requirements
Retail batch payment system