Trust transaction report: Compliance, accuracy and timeliness of transmission to the OACIQ

All agency executive officers and brokers acting on their own account are required to open and maintain a trust account.¹

According to section 38 of the Regulation respecting records, books and registers, trust accounting and inspection of brokers and agencies, by March 31 of each year, they must send the Organization a trust transaction report covering the period from January 1 to December 31, even though:

• there was no activity in the trust accounts during the year; and
• the account balance was $0 for the whole year.

It is not only essential that the trust transaction report be submitted on time, but it must also be complete and balanced, otherwise measures may be taken, up to and including the filing of a disciplinary complaint. In 2020, the OACIQ Discipline Committee imposed 30-day licence suspensions and fines of up to $8,000 on licensees who failed to send their trust transaction reports.

It is strongly recommended that agency executive officers and brokers acting on their own account enlist the services of a Chartered Professional Accountant (CPA) to audit the annual trust transaction report.

The trust transaction report must be accompanied by the following documents:

• Monthly bank statements for the period covered. If all monthly bank statements have not been received due to account inactivity, the licence holder must still send the Organization an inactivity confirmation letter from the financial institution for the period covered;
• The accounting registers on the amounts held in trust for the period covered.

All pages of the report must bear the name of the licence holder, be signed by a person authorized by the licence holder and bear the date of the signature.

• For more information, read the full disciplinary decisions by clicking on the file number:
• Decision on guilt and sanction (33-20-2240)
• Decision on guilt and sanction (33-20-2316/33-20-2317)
• Decision on sanction (33-20-2280/33-20-2281)
• Decision on guilt and sanction (33-20-2312/33-20-2313)
• Decision on guilt and sanction (33-20-2320/33-20-2321)

¹ Save for some exceptions, according to section 24 of the Regulation respecting records, books and registers, trust accounting and inspection of brokers and agencies.