CFPB updates Remittance Transfer Small Entity Compliance Guide

Agency Rule-Making & Guidance Remittance Transfer Rule CFPB

On June 18, the CFPB updated its Remittance Transfer Small Entity Compliance Guide to reflect the final amendments to the Remittance Transfer Rule (Final Rule) issued by the Bureau in May (covered by InfoBytes here). Among other things, the Final Rule grants a permanent safe harbor from exact remittance cost disclosures to insured institutions that do fewer than 500 remittances annually in the current and prior calendar years. Additionally, the Final Rule adopts a new, permanent exception that permits insured institutions to estimate the exchange rate for a remittance transfer to a particular country if, among other things, the remittance payment is made in the local currency of the designated recipient’s country and the insured institution processing the transaction made 1,000 or fewer remittance payments to that country in the previous calendar year. 

As previously covered by InfoBytes, the CFPB issued FAQs covering Covid-19 and the Final Rule, and the Bureau issued a policy statement, which established a temporary exception allowing institutions providing remittance transfers to estimate fees to consumers in light of the Covid-19 pandemic. For the period between July 1 to January 21, 2021, the Bureau will not cite supervisory violations or initiate enforcement actions against certain institutions for disclosing estimated fees and exchange rates.