Amazon Canada implements strict ownership verification to meet KYC rules

The e-commerce landscape for third-party sellers in North America is undergoing a structural shift as regulatory authorities increase pressure on digital platforms to verify the identities behind corporate entities. Amazon.ca has begun requesting a specific Self-Attestation document from its selling partners, a formal declaration designed to identify the individuals who ultimately own or control business accounts. This requirement is not merely an internal policy update but a response to revised Canadian Know Your Customer (KYC) regulations, which mandate a deeper level of transparency before financial disbursements can be processed.

According to a communication from Amazon, the document must provide a comprehensive picture of the legal business name, complete ownership structure, and any parent companies. The platform now requires the full legal names and birthdates of individuals who own or control 25% or more of the business. If no single individual meets the 25% threshold, the seller must identify the person who maintains actual control, typically a CEO, director, or senior officer.

This move mirrors broader industry trends where verification and compliance have become prerequisites for platform participation. Similar shifts are visible in other regions, such as when the European Media Freedom Act introduced comprehensive disclosure requirements for media service providers to reveal beneficial owners and public funding.

The technical requirements of self-attestation

The documentation required by Amazon.ca is subject to strict formatting and temporal constraints. According to the Self-Attestation Document Requirements, the declaration must be signed by a legal representative and dated within the last 180 days. For businesses with complex hierarchies, the reporting requirements extend upward through the parent company structure until the ultimate beneficial owners are identified.

The specific data points required for the attestation include:

• The full legal business name as registered with government authorities.
• The business registration number and the country of registration.
• A detailed breakdown of ownership percentages for all entities and individuals.
• The full legal names and dates of birth for all individuals listed as significant controllers.

Sellers who fail to provide this documentation risk having their disbursements withheld. The process represents a transition from simple tax identity verification to a rigorous "Look Through" methodology. According to a report on LinkedIn by industry experts, this is a signal that ownership transparency is no longer optional for those operating on large-scale marketplaces.

Beneficial ownership and FINTRAC standards

The regulatory framework driving these changes stems from the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC). According to the FINTRAC compliance guidance on beneficial ownership requirements, the purpose of these measures is to prevent the use of complex corporate structures for money laundering or terrorist financing. Beneficial ownership refers to the actual individuals who are the "ultimate" owners or controllers of a corporation or trust.

FINTRAC specifies that "reasonable measures" must be taken to confirm the accuracy of this information. For corporations, this involves searching widely held databases or obtaining official documents. According to the FINTRAC guidance, companies must obtain information on:

1. The names of all directors of the corporation.
2. The names and addresses of all beneficial owners.
3. The ownership, control, and structure of the entity.

For trusts, the requirements are even more granular. Reporting entities must obtain the names and addresses of all trustees, the known beneficiaries, and the settlors of the trust. This level of scrutiny ensures that the financial system is not being utilized by "straw men" or shell companies.

The emphasis on verifying the "individuals with significant control" (ISC) is a central pillar of these rules. In Canada, this is often cross-referenced with Corporations Canada’s database, where businesses are required to maintain an ISC register.

Global regulatory alignment

The introduction of these verification steps on Amazon.ca reflects a global tightening of financial controls. Marketplaces are increasingly held accountable for the entities they facilitate. In Europe, the Czech media coalitions have established self-regulation frameworks that mandate the disclosure of beneficial owners to ensure public funds and advertising allocations are transparent.

This global alignment is not restricted to ownership but extends to data protection and corporate responsibility. Research has shown that companies investing in robust compliance functions, such as Data Protection Officers, often see measurable economic benefits beyond mere regulatory adherence. For Amazon sellers, maintaining clean and accurate ownership records is becoming a operational necessity to avoid liquidity issues caused by disbursement holds.

Furthermore, as platforms like Amazon expand tools such as Brand Lift measurement to markets like Mexico, the underlying identity of the brand owner becomes a critical data point for the platform's internal risk assessment and advertising integrity.

The role of transparency in advertising integrity

The requirement for beneficial ownership disclosure is closely linked to the broader fight against advertising fraud and corporate obfuscation. According to industry research, anti-fraud efforts saved advertisers billions in 2023, yet transparency remains a challenge. When platforms know exactly who owns the accounts they pay out to, the risk of "bad actors" operating anonymously is significantly reduced.

Amazon's shift toward stricter KYC comes at a time when the company is also consolidating its advertising infrastructure. The integration of unified advertiser accounts in late 2025 enabled single-login access across regions, but it also centralized the compliance burden. A single verification failure in one region could theoretically impact an entity's standing across the entire Amazon ecosystem.

Implementation and seller impact

For many sellers, the request for a signed attestation document has caused administrative friction. According to reports from the Amazon Seller Central forums, documents are frequently rejected if the names do not match official government registries exactly. The requirement to include dates of birth and personal addresses for individuals with 25% or more ownership adds a layer of privacy concern that many small business owners had not previously encountered in a retail context.

However, the legal mandate remains firm. According to FINTRAC, reporting entities must keep beneficial ownership information up to date. If a seller's corporate structure changes—for example, through a merger or a significant stock transfer—the self-attestation must be resubmitted to reflect the new reality.

The move by Amazon.ca is a clear indication that the era of anonymous or loosely verified e-commerce is ending. As regulatory bodies like the ACCC and FTC continue to monitor digital platform services, the burden of proof for corporate identity will likely continue to rise.

Timeline

• May 2017: IAB Tech Lab introduces ads.txt to improve transparency in digital advertising inventory. Why greed, not technology, blocks programmatic advertising reform.
• March 23, 2021: FINTRAC updates its beneficial ownership guidance, clarifying the "reasonable measures" required for identity verification.
• January 2024: The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) issues a report on Google’s Privacy Sandbox, highlighting the impact of platform changes on competition and transparency. CMA Q1 2024 update report on implementation of the Privacy Sandbox commitment.
• August 8, 2025: The European Media Freedom Act (EMFA) enters into application, mandating ownership transparency for media providers across the EU. The European Media Freedom Act takes effect amid surveillance concerns.
• September 3, 2025: Amazon expands Brand Lift measurement to Mexico, emphasizing the need for verified brand identities across North American markets. Amazon Brand Lift expands to Mexico marketers.
• October 1, 2025: Amazon Ads enhances branded search tracking, improving how attribution recognizes trademarks and brand names. Amazon enhances branded search tracking across attribution platform.
• November 11, 2025: Amazon expands its Marketing Cloud lookback window to 25 months, increasing the depth of data available for verified advertisers. Advertising platforms merge behind AI agents as infrastructure scramble intensifies.
• January 3, 2026: Current reports confirm Amazon.ca’s active enforcement of the Self-Attestation requirement for Canadian sellers to comply with updated KYC standards.

Summary

• Who: Amazon.ca (Amazon Canada) and its third-party sellers, including corporations, trusts, and individuals with significant control (25% or more ownership).
• What: The implementation of a mandatory Self-Attestation document to verify beneficial ownership and corporate control structures.
• When: The requirement is currently active, with documents needing to be dated within 180 days of submission to ensure compliance with updated regulations.
• Where: This specific verification drive is focused on the Canadian marketplace (Amazon.ca), aligned with Canadian federal KYC regulations monitored by FINTRAC.
• Why: To comply with updated Canadian Know Your Customer (KYC) laws designed to increase financial transparency and prevent money laundering by identifying the actual individuals who own and control businesses.

Would you like me to find more examples of how other marketplaces like Walmart or eBay are handling these Canadian KYC requirements?