Bill C-276, the proposed Framework on the Access to and Use of Cash Act, would create a legal duty for the federal Minister of Finance to develop and implement a cash-access framework. It would also amend the Currency Act and the Bank of Canada Act. Its stated goal is to keep cash available and usable across Canada; that is a goal, not a guaranteed result.
The Minister would have to review existing laws, regulations and policies about cash availability at financial institutions within 90 days after the bill comes into force.
The framework would have to address access to cash, including infrastructure for withdrawals and deposits and a “reasonable distance” to reach them. It would also have to address continued cash use, cash donations to non-profits and community groups, and the long-term viability of cash infrastructure.
The Minister would have to report on the framework within 18 months after the bill comes into force, then publish the report within 10 days after it is tabled in both Houses of Parliament.
Within three years after that report is tabled, the Minister would have to review the framework’s implementation, effectiveness and social and economic impacts, and report findings and recommendations to Parliament.
The bill would prohibit the Bank of Canada from issuing a digital form of the dollar. It would also remove the Governor in Council’s power to call in coins and notes, according to the bill’s summary.
Federal government: The Minister of Finance would have to develop and implement the framework and complete the reviews and reports on the bill’s timelines. The bill does not specify which other agencies or organizations would run or deliver its measures.
People who use cash, including seniors, Indigenous peoples, newcomers and people with low incomes: The framework would have to include measures intended to ensure access to cash across Canada. The bill does not itself set service locations, distances or an individual process to obtain access.
Businesses, non-profits and community organizations: The framework would have to address continued cash use, including cash donations. The bill says this must be done without compromising efforts to curb money laundering, fraud and other financial crimes.
Bank of Canada: It could not issue a digital form of the dollar if the bill became law. The bill does not ban digital payments or cryptocurrencies generally.
People who hold coins or notes: The bill proposes removing a federal power to call in coins and notes. The supplied material does not explain how that change would affect existing rules or any particular coins or notes.
No cost estimate is included in the supplied material.
The bill would require ministerial reviews, framework work and reports, but gives no staffing or cost figure.
The framework could involve measures affecting cash infrastructure, but the bill does not specify funding, who would pay, or whether money would be set aside.
The supplied material does not state the bill’s current parliamentary status or when it would come into force. No publicly available information on those points is included.
The bill does not define “reasonable distance,” or set a minimum level of cash access.
It does not set rules for how the framework would be delivered, who would be responsible for each measure, or how compliance would be enforced.
It does not say how people, businesses or organizations could raise concerns or challenge a failure to provide access.
The Currency Act and Bank of Canada Act are not supplied, so the changes to existing law—and how the amendments fit with current provisions—could not be checked against those Acts.
The bill identifies that some groups rely more on cash, and that non-profits and community groups use it for fundraising.
Cash infrastructure for withdrawals and deposits could help people who rely on cash continue to access and use it.
Requiring the framework to address donations and financial crime together recognizes both the use of cash for fundraising and the need to guard against crime.
Reports and a later review would require the Minister to describe the framework and assess its effects.
The bill requires a framework but leaves key choices—such as what counts as a reasonable distance and what access must be provided—to be worked out later.
It does not set direct service duties for financial institutions or establish enforcement, complaints or appeal processes. The bill’s goal of access may therefore not, by itself, guarantee access for any person.
The Bank of Canada prohibition would rule out its issuing a digital form of the dollar, but the bill does not explain how that restriction would interact with future payment options.
The bill requires work and reports but provides no cost estimate or funding plan.