Payments Canada published amendments to the rules for the Automated Clearing and Settlement System (ACSS) and Lynx to improve operational clarity and align requirements with existing by-laws. The changes cover how clearing arrangements are wound down, introduce a new annual compliance attestation for Direct Clearers, and update Lynx operational processes including form digitization and throughput monitoring guidance. For ACSS rules D1 and D2, Clearing Agents and Group Clearers must notify Payments Canada when they decide to cease acting immediately for an Indirect Clearer (IC), and must continue accepting payment items for the IC until the final exchange time on the business day they cease acting. ACSS Rule F7 now requires Direct Clearers (DCs) to submit an annual attestation by January 31 confirming adherence to the Financial Institutional File (FIF) Service Level Description, and reinforces DC accountability for ensuring non-member subscribers comply with the FIF SLD. A set of other ACSS rules were also updated for internal consistency. In Lynx, Rule 12 was amended to support digitization of member forms, including submitting the Lynx Incident Report through the member portal, and references to the CPA Service Desk were updated to reflect its renaming to the Payments Canada Operations Centre; the same renaming updates were made across Lynx rules 1, 2, 5 and 6. Clarifications to Lynx TSP-004 state that throughput monitoring is intended to identify trends and provide insights into participants’ business models rather than operate as a pass-fail measure, with monthly reports used to track trends and participant engagement as needed. The amendments took effect on February 10, 2025.

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