On September 18, 2023, the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) published a Small Entity Compliance Guide to assist the small business community in complying with the Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) reporting rule.
To know more, click https://www.fcctimes.com/2023/09/18/fincen-publishes-small-business-guide-to-simplify-compliance-with-beneficial-ownership-reporting-rule/
According to the guide:
- A beneficial owner is an individual who owns or controls at least 25 percent of a company or exercises substantial control over it.
- A company applicant is an individual who directly files or bears primary responsibility for filing the documents that create or register the company.
The term ‘reporting companies’ includes both ‘domestic reporting companies’ and ‘foreign reporting companies,’ both of which are required to report their beneficial ownership information to FinCEN.
Reporting companies registered before January 1, 2024, must submit:
- Legal name, any trade names, address, jurisdiction of formation, and Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN).
- Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI), which FinCEN defines as identifying information, including name, date of birth, address, and a unique identifying number from an identification document, such as a driver’s license or passport.
Starting January 1, 2024, companies must file their initial BOI report by January 1, 2025, and those created or registered after January 1, 2024, must file within 30 days.