Your obligations under the BO framework and how to stay compliant.
Who is a beneficial owner?
A natural person who ultimately owns or controls the company — typically anyone holding 20% or more of shares or voting rights, or who otherwise exercises significant control. Nominee arrangements must be looked through.
Your obligations
Companies must obtain BO information, keep a register of beneficial owners, lodge the information with SSM, and update it when it changes. The information must be kept for at least seven years after a person ceases to be a BO.
Common pitfalls
Trust and corporate shareholders are often where things go wrong — the analysis must continue up the chain until natural persons are identified. Foreign holding structures need extra care.
How we keep your BO register clean
As part of our secretarial retainer we maintain the BO register, request annual confirmations from shareholders, and lodge updates with SSM whenever ownership changes.
Keep reading
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