Form F-X.SS.2021

SUPPORTING STATEMENT FOR THE PAPERWORK REDUCTION ACT
INFORMATION COLLECTION SUBMISSION FOR REGISTRATION FORM F-X

A.

JUSTIFICATION
1.

Circumstances Making the Collection of Information Necessary

Form F-X is used for the appointment of an agent for service of process by eligible
Canadian issuers registering securities on Forms F-8, F-10, F-80 under the Securities Act;
registering securities on Form 40-F under the Exchange Act; or filing periodic reports on
Form 40-F under the Exchange Act. It is also used by any person filing tender offer
documents on Schedules 13E-4F, 14D-1F or 14D-9F under the Exchange Act and by any
non-U.S. person acting as trustee with respect to securities registered on Forms F-7, F-8, F10 or F-80. In addition, Form F-X is used by a Canadian issuer qualifying an offering
statement pursuant to Regulation A and by any non-issuer providing Form CB in connection
with a tender offer, rights offering or business combination.
2.

Purpose and Use of the Information Collection

Form F-X provides investors with information about the U.S. person who has been
appointed agent upon whom may be served any process, pleadings, subpoenas or other
papers in certain civil suits brought against the filer of the Form, or in any investigation or
administrative providing conducted by the Commission.
3.

Consideration Given to Information Technology
Form F-X is filed electronically on the EDGAR system.

4.

Duplication of Information

Form F-X is a document designed to provide investors in certain Canadian securities
with information concerning the U.S. person designated as an agent for service of process.
The Form also serves as consent to service of an administrative subpoena and includes an
undertaking to assist the Commission in administrative investigations. This information is
only available through this Form.
5.

Reducing the Burden on Small Entities

As noted above, certain Canadian issuers are required to Form F-X. Any non-U.S.
person acting as a trustee with respect to securities registered on Forms F-7, F-8,
F-10 or F-80 must also must also filed Form F-X. All issuers filing Form F-X should have
the resources available to prepare the necessary information for the Commission. The
Form does not unduly burden small entities.

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6.

Consequences of Not Conducting Collection

If the information required in Form F-X was not available, U.S. investors may find it
difficult to effectuate service of process, and the Commission may find it difficult to require
certain Canadian issuers to assist the Commission with administrative investigations. Also,
persons considering investment in securities issued by Canadian companies would find it
more difficult and expensive to obtain the necessary information if the specified persons
were not required to file this information with the Commission
7.

Special Circumstances
There are no special circumstances.

8.

Consultations with Persons Outside the Agency

No comments were received during the 60-day comment period prior to OMB’s
review of this submission.
9.

Payment or Gift to Respondents
No payment or gift has been provided to any respondents.

10.

Confidentiality
Form F-X is a public document.

11.

Sensitive Questions

No information of a sensitive nature, including social security numbers, will be
required under this collection of information. The information collection collects basic
Personally Identifiable Information (PII) that may include signature of the official signing on
behalf of the entity. However, the agency has determined that the information collection
does not constitute a system of record for purposes of the Privacy Act. Information is not
retrieved by a personal identifier. In accordance with Section 208 of the E-Government Act
of 2002, the agency has conducted a Privacy Impact Assessment (PIA) of the EDGAR
system, in connection with this collection of information. The EDGAR PIA, published on
February 5, 2020 is provided as a supplemental document and is also available at
https://www.sec.gov/privacy.

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12.

Estimate of Respondent Reporting Burden
Estimated Reporting Burden
Information
Collection
Title
Form F-X

OMB Control
Number

Number of
Responses

Burden
Hours

3235-0379

114

228

We estimate Form F-X takes approximately two hours to prepare and is filed by
approximately 114 Canadian issuers for a total of 228 burden hours (2 hours per response x
114 responses). We derived our burden hour estimates by estimating the average number
of hours it would take a Canadian issuer to compile the necessary information and data,
prepare and review disclosure, file documents and retain records. We believe that the
actual burdens will likely vary among individual issuers based on the nature of their
operations. The burden estimate for the hours is made solely for the purpose of the
Paperwork Reduction Act.
13.

Estimate of Total Annualized Cost Burden

We estimate that there is no cost associated with this information collection because
100% of the burden is prepared by the Canadian issuer.
14.

Costs to Federal Government

The annual cost of reviewing and processing disclosure documents, including
registration statements, post-effective amendments, proxy statements, annual reports and
other filings of operating companies amounted to approximately $103,479,690 in fiscal year
2019, based on the Commission’s computation of the value of staff time devoted to this
activity and related overhead.
15.

Reason for Change in Burden
There is no change in burden.

16.

Information Collection Planned for Statistical Purposes
The information collection is not planned for statistical purposes.

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17.

Approval to Omit OMB Expiration Date

We request authorization to omit the expiration date on the electronic version of the
form. Including the expiration date on the electronic version of the form will result in
increased costs because the need to make changes to the form may not follow the
application’s scheduled version release dates. The OMB control number will be displayed.
18.

Exceptions to Certification for Paperwork Reduction Act Submissions
There are no exceptions to certification for Paperwork Reduction Act submissions.

B.

STATISTICAL METHODS
The information collection does not employ statistical methods.]