Bill S-19

1st Session, 38th Parliament,

53-54 Elizabeth II, 2004-2005

senate of canada

BILL S-19

An Act to amend the Criminal Code (criminal interest rate)

Her Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Senate and House of Commons of Canada, enacts as follows:

1. (1) The definitions “criminal rate” and “interest” in subsection 347(2) of the Criminal Code are replaced by the following:

“criminal rate” means an effective annual rate of interest on the credit advanced under an agreement or arrangement, calculated in accordance with generally accepted actuarial practices and principles, that exceeds by thirty-five percentage points or more the Target for the Overnight Rate, determined and published by the Bank of Canada, on the day on which the agreement or arrangement is entered into or renewed;

“interest” means the aggregate of all charges and expenses, whether in the form of a fee, fine, penalty, commission or other similar charge or expense or in any other form, paid or payable for the advancing of credit under an agreement or arrangement, by or on behalf of the person to whom the credit is or is to be advanced, irrespective of the person to whom any such charges and expenses are or are to be paid or payable, but does not include any repayment of credit advanced or any official fee, overdraft charge, required deposit balance or, in the case of a mortgage transaction, any amount required to be paid on account of property taxes;

(2) Section 347 of the Act is amended by adding the following after subsection (8):

(9) This section does not apply to any agreement or arrangement under which the credit advanced exceeds one hundred thousand dollars.

2. This Act comes into force sixty days after the day on which it receives royal assent.