WASHINGTON — The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network has announced it is delaying the use of its revised Suspicious Activity Report forms and credit unions should continue using the current forms until further notice.
The planned effective date had been June 30, 2007 for depository institutions, casinos and card clubs, insurance companies and the securities and futures industries to begin using the forms. FinCEN did not set new effective dates, but said they would be coming in a future notice. For now, credit unions should continue using the current forms.
FinCEN, in cooperation with the IRS, recently initiated an information-technology modernization strategy that includes a newly established Bank Secrecy Act data quality management program for data accuracy, completeness and timely availability for law enforcement and financial regulators. In re-examining many data management protocols, they discovered problems that could adversely impact how certain information is put into the database. FinCEN and the IRS are focusing on improving the current database before introducing new products or procedures.
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Ed Dorris, FinCEN's chief information officer, stated, "This temporary delay allows FinCEN, working with the IRS, to make certain that the data protocol issues are addressed before accepting the new SAR format. It is also very important that financial institutions receive as much notice as possible to make business decisions based on our deadlines."
This delay does not alter the effective date of the revised forms for money services businesses, which became effective on March 31, 2007 and will become mandatory Oct. 1, 2007.
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