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Bulletin: NY000606

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Bulletin: NY000606

Note: This Bulletin has been replaced by NY000629 - US Department of Treasury: Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN): Geographic Targeting Order, Manhattan, Brooklyn, Bronx, Queens and Staten Island NY. Use it for reference only.

Bulletin Document
V 2
Date: August 18, 2017
To: All New York State Agents
RE: US Department of Treasury: Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN)

This morning FinCEN briefed us on their plans to extend the current Geographic Targeting Order for another 6 months. All of the existing conditions still apply.  Some additional conditions for reporting are outlined below.  The GTO will have an effective date starting on September 22nd. This means that for closings scheduled between August 23rd and September 21st, the GTO will not apply although FinCEN will accept voluntary filings. FinCEN has indicated that they will be requesting authority to make the reporting requirements of the GTO permanent.  Accordingly I strongly recommend that you continue with voluntary reporting during the period from August 23rd to September 22nd.

There will be two main changes to the current GTOs:

  1. New Jurisdiction – City and county of Honolulu, Hawaii. The threshold for this market will be $3 million. While they were not specific, the addition of Honolulu was due to requests from law enforcement.
  2. Wire Transfers are in - With the change in section 275 of the sanctions law, the new GTO will cover transactions without a bank loan where all or a portion of the purchase price is paid in currency, check, or funds transfer. This means transactions by wire will require reporting. 

The delayed effective date is designed to help us prepare for these changes.

We are expecting FinCEN to reach out with some notes about 8300 filing compliance. FinCEN has indicated some specific trends on completing the 8300 that they want to make everyone aware of and hopefully help address.

In the event you have any questions, please call the Stewart Title Insurance Company – New York legal Department at (212) 922-0050.

 

Forms: IRS/FinCEN 8300; Cert Fill-In; Cert Print and Write

Attachments: Updated Geographic Targeting Order; Fact Sheet

THIS BULLETIN IS FURNISHED TO INFORM YOU OF CURRENT DEVELOPMENTS. AS A REMINDER, YOU ARE CHARGED WITH KNOWLEDGE OF THE CONTENT ON VIRTUAL UNDERWRITER  AS IT EXISTS FROM TIME TO TIME AS IT APPLIES TO YOU, AS WELL AS ANY OTHER INSTRUCTIONS. OUR UNDERWRITING AGREEMENTS DO NOT AUTHORIZE OUR ISSUING AGENTS TO ENGAGE IN SETTLEMENTS OR CLOSINGS ON BEHALF OF STEWART TITLE GUARANTY COMPANY. THIS BULLETIN IS NOT INTENDED TO DIRECT YOUR ESCROW OR SETTLEMENT PRACTICES OR TO CHANGE PROVISIONS OF APPLICABLE UNDERWRITING AGREEMENTS. CONFIDENTIAL, PROPRIETARY, OR NONPUBLIC PERSONAL INFORMATION SHOULD NEVER BE SHARED OR DISSEMINATED EXCEPT AS ALLOWED BY LAW. IF APPLICABLE STATE LAW OR REGULATION IMPOSES ADDITIONAL REQUIREMENTS, YOU SHOULD CONTINUE TO COMPLY WITH THOSE REQUIREMENTS.

References