Know your customer and anti-money-laundering policy
Identity checks help a financial provider understand who uses an account and reduce misuse. The exact checks depend on the legal service provider and the activity being requested in Canada.
1. Purpose of this policy
Know your customer, or KYC, is the process of identifying an account holder and checking relevant information. Anti-money-laundering and anti-terrorist-financing controls seek to detect and deter unlawful use of financial services. These controls can protect legitimate users, but they also add steps before some features or payments are available.
Tenardship is a website and technology presentation. The legal entity that provides an account or executes a regulated transaction must apply the obligations that actually govern it. Visitors should ask for that entity's name and privacy documents before uploading identity material or funding an account.
2. What KYC means
KYC typically collects a person's legal name, date of birth, address and contact information, then compares those details with evidence from a trusted source. The purpose is to establish that the person opening the account is who they claim to be and can lawfully use the service.
Verification is not a guarantee that an account is safe from loss. It helps reduce identity theft and mistaken ownership, while market, custody and operational risks remain. Information may need to be updated when a user's address, name or control of an account changes.
3. What AML and anti-terrorist-financing controls mean
AML controls assess whether a service could be used to conceal the source of funds or move proceeds of crime. A regulated provider may screen names, review unusual transaction patterns and keep records required by law. Anti-terrorist-financing controls address related prohibited activity.
These checks are risk-based. A higher-risk activity or unusual payment route may require more information than a routine inquiry. A provider may pause a transaction while it gathers evidence or meets a reporting duty, and it may be unable to discuss every detail of an investigation.
4. Why identity verification may be required
Identity checks reduce the chance that someone opens an account with stolen details or redirects a withdrawal to an unrelated person. They can also help resolve a disputed instruction and connect a payment to the correct account holder. A provider cannot safely rely on an email address alone for a consequential transaction.
Canadian legal obligations vary by provider and product. A dealer, money services business, bank or payment processor can have different requirements. The actual provider should explain which checks apply to your account and which service cannot begin until verification is complete.
5. Information and documents
A provider may request a government-issued identity document, evidence of a residential address and information about the source of funds where appropriate. It may ask for an image or live camera check to compare the applicant with the document, but only if that method is part of its actual process and privacy notice.
This site does not specify an exact document set because no verified provider workflow was supplied. Do not send a passport, driver's licence or bank statement to an unsolicited email address. Use the provider's authenticated upload channel and ask how the document is stored, who can view it and when it will be deleted.
6. Verification steps
The usual sequence begins with registration and basic contact details. A provider then requests any required identity information, checks it against appropriate sources and may review discrepancies manually. It should communicate whether the account is approved, needs more evidence or cannot proceed.
A machine-assisted document check can speed up a routine case but may reject a valid image because it is cropped, blurred or inconsistent with the account entry. Manual review should have a way to address an error. Keep copies of notices and submit a correction through the official channel rather than opening several duplicate accounts.
7. Additional due diligence
Enhanced due diligence may apply when a provider identifies a higher risk of misuse, a complex ownership structure, unusual payment flows or other factors specified by law and policy. It can involve additional evidence of identity, beneficial ownership, the source of funds or the purpose of activity.
The provider should request information proportional to the issue and explain what can be shared. Do not assume a request means wrongdoing has been alleged. Equally, do not provide false documents to avoid a delay; inaccurate records can lead to restriction or closure of an account.
8. How long checks can take
No fixed verification completion time has been supplied for this website. Timing depends on document quality, the provider's capacity, automated checks, manual review and whether an additional question must be answered. A payment or withdrawal can have a separate processing clock after verification is complete.
If you need access by a particular date, ask the provider before sending money. Save the reference number for a pending check and use the official support channel for a status request. Avoid assuming that a general payment estimate overrides an identity-review hold.
9. Reasons a check may be declined or paused
A document can be unreadable, expired, altered or inconsistent with the name and address entered. The provider may also lack enough information to identify a beneficial owner, confirm a payment source or satisfy an applicable legal restriction. A technical failure can require resubmission without implying a problem with the applicant.
Where permitted, the provider should explain the practical next step: a clearer image, corrected detail or another accepted document. Some restrictions cannot be fully described while a lawful review is underway. Do not circumvent a pause by using another person's account or payment instrument.
10. Transaction monitoring
A provider subject to financial crime rules may compare transaction size, frequency, destination and pattern with the account's expected activity. It may review rapid in-and-out transfers, third-party payments or a sudden change in behaviour. Monitoring is intended to flag questions for review, not to label every unusual transaction as unlawful.
During review, a provider may ask for clarification or temporarily limit a feature. Keep accurate payment references and be ready to explain the origin and intended use of funds. The provider's own agreement should describe its authority to pause or refuse a transaction.
11. User responsibilities
Provide true, current information about yourself and any person who controls an account. Use payment methods in your own name where the provider requires it. Tell the provider when a material detail changes, especially an address, legal name or control of a business account.
Never upload a borrowed document or ask another person to complete a camera check for you. False information can cause an account restriction, delayed withdrawal or legal report. Keep credentials private and report suspected identity misuse quickly.
12. Retention and protection of verification data
Identity records may need to be kept for periods required by the provider's applicable law. They should be accessible only to authorized personnel and processors, protected in transit and at rest, and deleted when retention is no longer justified. A user should be told when a legal hold prevents immediate deletion.
This website's Privacy Policy explains its general handling of inquiry data. A separate account provider may collect more sensitive material and must supply its own privacy terms. Ask for that notice before uploading identity documents.
13. Sharing information
Verification information may be shared with identity-check providers, infrastructure providers, the legal account provider, and authorities where law requires or permits it. Each transfer should have a clear purpose and appropriate protection. The provider should identify its processor categories and any cross-border storage in its privacy notice.
A support agent does not need your full identity document in an ordinary email to answer a general question. Limit the data you share to what the verified process requests. If a third party contacts you directly asking for documents, confirm its role with the provider first.
14. Canadian compliance context
Canada's Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act and related rules can impose identification, record-keeping and reporting duties on entities that fall within their scope. Securities and consumer-protection requirements may add other obligations depending on the product, provider and province.
This policy does not claim that Tenardship is a FINTRAC-registered money services business, a CIRO member or a licensed dealer. Such status must be verified for the actual legal provider. A registration in one category does not guarantee investment returns or immunity from fraud.
15. Questions and support
For a question about the site's collection of your details or the next verification step, write to [email protected]. Identify the account or inquiry without including a password, one-time code or full card number. If another legal provider holds your account, contact that provider for its binding verification status.
If you believe a check is incorrect, describe the specific mismatch and provide a reliable way to reach you. Keep a copy of the response. A formal complaint about a financial service should also follow the complaints process and any process in the provider's agreement.