Canada updated bank complaint rules. Here's what changes for you.
Banks now must resolve customer complaints within 56 days without pause and provide clear timelines and final-decision notices.
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Canada has updated its rules for how banks handle customer complaints, with new timelines and transparency requirements that take effect now.
The Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC), the federal watchdog for regulated financial institutions, published the updated guideline on complaint-handling procedures on Tuesday. Banks must now resolve or close a consumer complaint within the legislated 56-day period without interruption—a stricter standard than before.
Banks are also required to provide customers with a clear and timely acknowledgement confirming receipt of a complaint. That acknowledgement must include key information about the complaint-handling process, applicable timelines, the steps involved, and what the consumer can expect next.
At the conclusion of any complaint that isn't resolved at the first stage, banks must now issue a Notice of Final Decision and inform customers of their right to escalate the complaint to an external complaints body. The FCAC also clarified banks' obligation to provide timely redress where required and to offer consumers remediation for harm based on the circumstances of the complaint.
According to the FCAC statement, the revised guideline reflects supervisory observations made since the original guidance was introduced in 2022 and clarifies expectations for how banks meet their legislative obligations under the Bank Act and the Financial Consumer Protection Framework Regulations.
