VIDEO: SAR Filings for Potential Structuring-Related Activity
In this Compliance Clip (video), Adam reviews FinCEN’s October 2025 FAQ guidance addressing whether a SAR is required for transactions near the $10,000 CTR threshold. He explains what the guidance says, how it applies to potential structuring activity, and what financial institutions should keep in mind for compliance.
Video Transcript
This Compliance Clip is going to talk about SAR filings for potential structuring-related activity. Specifically, the question we have here is this: is a financial institution required to file a Suspicious Activity Report for a transaction or a series of transactions with a value at or near the currency reporting threshold - for example, over $10,00 - absent information that the transaction or series of transactions is designed to evade BSA reporting requirements.
So the question is, if somebody's trying to avoid a CTR, which the threshold is over $10,000, so they're bringing in a transaction of just under $10,000, and they've got multiple transactions just under $10,000, is a SAR required for potential structuring? That's the question we have here.
Now, this question actually comes from a list of frequently asked questions, and there were a few of them that were released in October of 2025. At the time of this recording, I just finished recording our Winter 2026 Quarterly Compliance Update, which covered the fourth quarter of 2025, and so I wanted to release this as a Compliance Clip because the initial answer to this is quite shocking.
Is a financial institution required to file a SAR for potential structuring activity? That's what the question is asking. And so what FinCEN released in their Q&A in October 2025, the answer is no.
FinCEN actually went through and answered a lot of questions “no” that we didn't think were “no.” So on the surface, it seems somewhat shocking. But if we actually read the full answer, it's not as shocking. So let's do that real quick to clarify what they mean.
So what they say in this answer to whether a Suspicious Activity Report is required when there's potential structuring activity, they say the mere presence of a transaction or series of transactions by or on behalf of the same person at or near the $10,000 CTR threshold is not information sufficient to require the filing of a SAR or a Suspicious Activity Report. They go on to say that the financial institutions are only required to file a Suspicious Activity Report if the institution knows, suspects, or has reason to suspect that the transaction or series of transactions is designed to evade CTR reporting thresholds.
So they're starting to reverse the answer of “no.” What they're really answering here with no is, is it required? And so the answer is technically no, but it's, I think it's a big “no, but”, right?
They go on to explain this even further. They say a financial institution is required to file a Suspicious Activity Report for a transaction conducted or attempted by, at, or through the institution, if it involves or aggregates at least $5,000 in funds or other assets. So you are required to file a Suspicious Activity Report if you believe there's been some illegal activity. If you suspect it or no, right? This includes transactions designed to evade the requirement that a financial institution file a CTR for one or more transactions and currency by, through, or to the institution by or on behalf of any person and that result in either cash or in or cash out totaling more than $10,000 during any one business day.
So what they're saying is just because a transaction is below the CTR threshold doesn't require a SAR, but if you have reason to believe or you suspect that there is something illegal, which structuring falls in that category - and what is structuring, structuring is intentionally avoiding a CTR reporting requirement - then you would be required to file a Suspicious Activity Report.
In other words, nothing has changed, right? Nothing has changed regarding potential structuring SARs for our financial institution. So if we do have somebody who is structuring a transaction, maybe $7,500 on day one is $7,500 on day two, and then they have a check of $15,000, that might be considered structuring. We might have reason to believe that. Especially if somebody in the past told us they have to avoid CTRs because they don't want the government in their business. Or maybe it's a little more obvious where they're doing $9,999 three days in a row, and then they're writing a check out for nearly $30,000, right? That would be pretty obvious structuring, and I think it's fair that a reasonable person could have reason to believe that something illegal was happening.
And so I don't think anything has changed with this frequently asked question. But what I think has changed is that the regulators are trying to clarify to financial institutions what is, in fact, required by statute and what is not. That's what I think this, this frequently asked question, along with the other ones that were released in October of 2025. I think that's what they're trying to accomplish. They're trying to clarify what is, in fact, technically required and what is not, where, at the end of the day, nothing has really changed.
In case you had gotten a little excited early on in this video or when that first came out in October, it's important to understand that we're still required to file suspicious activity reports if we believe or have reason to believe that something illegal has happened through our financial institution, which includes, of course, structuring.
This was a topic that was covered in the BSA section of our Winter 2026 Quarterly Compliance Update. But I wanted to share this with you because I feel this is a really relevant topic that came out of the last quarter of 2025. If you're interested in more changes that took place in the last quarter of 2025, take a look at our Winter 2026 Quarterly Compliance Update, which covers everything that happened from the 4th quarter of 2025.
Thanks for watching to the end of this Compliance Clip.