UBO: Ultimate Beneficial Owner
In order to comply with the EU Directive on the prevention of the use of the financial system for the purposes of money laundering or terrorist financing, Belgium has implemented a centralised register of beneficial owners (“UBO register”) in domestic law.
1. New compliance obligation for Belgian entities
Legal representatives / administrators are obliged to register in the UBO database adequate, accurate and current information on the beneficial owners of Belgian companies, a(i)sbl and foundations.
2. Who should be recorded as a beneficial owner
Any natural person who has directly or indirectly a sufficient percentage of the voting rights or ownership interest in a Belgian entity needs to be reported in the UBO register. More precisely, for the three types of Belgian legal entities identified in the law, namely companies, a(i)sbl and foundations as well as trusts and other similar entities, the following persons are considered as beneficial owners:
Type of legal entities |
Company |
Trust / foundation |
A(i)SBL |
Main UBO(s) to be reported |
Any natural person(s) who has/have direct or indirect ownership interest of more than 25 % in the company or any natural person who control(s) the company by any other means |
|
|
Residual category if no main UBO(s) is identified |
senior managing official(s) |
3. Information to be disclosed
The following information would among others need to be disclosed regarding each natural person identified as UBO
- Date of birth
- Nationality(ies)
- Address of residency
-
Date as from which the person became UBO
-
The national identification number or similar number issued by the country of residence
4. Deadline
Registration in the UBO register must in principle be made before March 31, 2019.
5. Penalties
In case of infringement, the legal representatives could be liable to an administrative fine of between 250.00 EUR and 50,000.00 EUR.
6. Who may have access to the data uploaded on the UBO register?
Information uploaded in the UBO register may be accessible by competent authorities (including SPF FINANCES) entities subject to anti-money laundering obligations (accounting office, notary, lawyer, etc.) as well as citizen.
Authorities and entities subject to the anti-money laundering law can access the data by applying for authorization to certain governmental bodies.
Citizens may be able to perform some search the register based on the company number.
Except for the authorities, access to information in this database should involve the payment of a fixed fee.
Given the sensitivity of certain information to be disclosed, motivated derogation for disclosure of information in the UBO register may, in limited number of circumstances, be claimed.
7. How can THG help
THG is at your disposal to assist you with these new legal obligations.
If we already handle your file, we probably have most of the information needed to complete this UBO register. A specific mandate to assist you in these steps must however be obtained to proceed with such formalities. We suggest you get in touch with your account manager to discuss it in more detail.