BSA/AML, SAR: SAR Documentation
Printer-friendly VersionQuestion:
Must the bank maintain a file on SARs that it did NOT file?
Answer:
The new exam procedures do not explicitly require this but strongly encourage that decisions--both to file and not to file--should be documented. The procedures note that "...the bank should not be criticized for the failure to file a SAR unless the failure is significant or accompanied by evidence of bad faith." The file should have at least a brief written memo that explains the investigation and why the SAR was not filed in order to prove to the examiner that there was no bad faith!