Effective January 1, 2025, Federal law — the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) — requires certain entities, including many small businesses, to report information about the individuals who ultimately own or control them (also known as their “beneficial owners”) to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), a bureau of the U.S. Department of the Treasury.
Who has to report beneficial ownership information?
- Corporations
- Limited Liability Companies (LLC)
- Foreign Companies registered to do business in any U.S. state or Indian tribe
What information needs to be reported?
A reporting company must provide:
- Its legal name and any trade name or DBA
- Its address
- Its Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN)
- The jurisdiction in which it was formed or first registered
Each company's beneficial owner(s) must provide:
- Legal name
- Birthdate
- Address
- Personal identifying number such as a driver's license or passport
Who does not have to report beneficial ownership information?
23 types of entities are exempt from beneficial ownership information reporting requirements. This includes:
- Nonprofits
- Publicly Traded Companies
- Certain Large Operating Companies
To learn about the other types of exempt entities please view:
How to file beneficial ownership information
Reporting companies report beneficial ownership their information electronically through FinCEN's website
Reporting companies that willfully violate the beneficial ownership requirements may be subject to civil penalties. For additional information regarding penalties please visit FinCEN's website
When to file beneficial ownership information
- Reporting companies that were created or registered before January 1, 2024, has until January 1, 2025 to report beneficial ownership information.
- Reporting companies that were created or registered in 2024 have 90 calendar days from the date of receiving actual or public notice of the company's creation or registration to file an initial beneficial ownership report.
- Reporting companies created or registered on or after January 1, 2025 have 30 calendar days from the date of receiving actual or public notice of the company's creation or registration to file an initial beneficial ownership report.