A foreign PEP is a person who holds or has held one of the following offices or positions in or on behalf of a foreign state:

  • head of state or head of government;
  • member of the executive council of government or member of a legislature;
  • deputy minister or equivalent rank;
  • ambassador, or attaché or counsellor of an ambassador;
  • military officer with a rank of general or above;
  • president of a state-owned company or a state-owned bank;
  • head of a government agency;
  • judge of a supreme court, constitutional court or other court of last resort; or
  • leader or president of a political party represented in a legislature.
A domestic PEP is a person who holds — or has held within the last 5 years — a specific office or position in or on behalf of the Canadian federal government, a Canadian provincial government, or a Canadian municipal government:
  • Governor General, lieutenant governor or head of government;
  • member of the Senate or House of Commons or member of a legislature;
  • deputy minister or equivalent rank;
  • ambassador, or attaché or counsellor of an ambassador;
  • military officer with a rank of general or above;
  • president of a corporation that is wholly owned directly by Her Majesty in right of Canada or a province;
  • head of a government agency;
  • judge of an appellate court in a province, the Federal Court of Appeal or the Supreme Court of Canada;
  • leader or president of a political party represented in a legislature; or
  • mayor

.A HIO is a person who currently holds or has held within the last 5 years the specific office or position of head of an international organization and the international organization that they head or were head of is either:

  • an international organization established by the governments of states;
  • an institution of an organization referred to above; or
  • an international sports organization.

The HIO is the primary person who leads the organization. For example, the HIO could be a president or CEO.

If a person is a PEP or HIO, some of their family members are considered family members of PEPs or HIOs under the PCMLTFA and associated Regulations. These family members are:

  • their spouse or common-law partner;
  • their biological or adoptive child(ren);
  • their mother(s) or father(s);
  • the mother(s) or father(s) of their spouse or common-law partner (mother-in-law or father-in-law); and
  • the child(ren) of their mother or father (sibling(s)).

A close associate can be a person who is connected to a PEP or HIO for personal or business reasons. Examples of relationships that could indicate that someone is a close associate (personal or business) could include, but are not limited to, persons who:

  • are the business partners of, or who beneficially own or control a business with, a PEP or HIO;
  • are in a romantic relationship with a PEP or HIO;
  • are involved in financial transactions with a PEP or a HIO;
  • serve as prominent members of the same political party or union as a PEP or HIO;
  • serve as a member of the same board as a PEP or HIO;
  • carry out charitable works closely with a PEP or HIO; or
  • are listed as joint on a policy where one of the holders may be a PEP or HIO.