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
Rule D2
Clearing Agent Requirements
Retail batch payment system
Rule D3
Indirect Clearer Requirements
Retail batch payment system
Rule D4
Institution Numbers and Clearing Agency/Representative Arrangements
Retail batch payment system
Rule E1
Shared Electronic Point-of-Service Payment Items
Retail batch payment system
Rule E2
Exchange for the Purpose of Clearing and Settlement of Electronic On-line Payment Items
Retail batch payment system
Rule E3
Rules Applicable to Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) Transactions
Retail batch payment system
Rule E4
Exchange of PIN-less Point-of-Service Debit Payment Items for the Purpose of Clearing and Settlement
Retail batch payment system
Rule E5
Exchange of Point-of-Service Delayed Authorization Debit Payment Items for the Purpose of Clearing and Settlement
Retail batch payment system
Rule F1
Rules applicable to Automated Funds Transfer (AFT) Transactions
Retail batch payment system
Rule F4
Rules applicable to Automated Funds Transfer (AFT) Transactions using ISO 20022 messages
Retail batch payment system
Rule F7
Financial Institutions File (FIF)
Retail batch payment system
Rule F8
Direct Payment Routing Numbers
Retail batch payment system