Corporate Transparency Act
How do I comply with the Corporate Transparency Act?
As of January 1, 2024, Congress is requiring many U.S. companies or corporations to report information about their company, company owner/main beneficiary, and potentially company applicants.
This was designed to prevent illegal activity including tax fraud and money laundering. As a result, companies are required to submit a Beneficial Ownership Information Report (BOI) to the U.S. Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN).
You are likely required to comply with the act if you are a corporation, LLC, or created in the U.S. through filing with the secretary of state or similar office—most small businesses apply.
Your compliance with the act is based on submission of the BOI. The information you are required to report varies based on when your company/business was established.
Details of Submission
If your business was established after January 1, 2024, you are required to submit information on the business, beneficial owners, and company applicants. You have 90 days from the notice of formation or public announcement of the company to file.
If your business was established before January 1, 2024, you do not need to submit information regarding company applicants. You have until January 1, 2025 to file.
When filing, you must include the legal name of the company, the trade name (DBA) of the company, the address of the primary place of business, and the taxpayer identification number. Information about the owner includes their legal name, date of birth, and residential street address. You will also need to include a unique identifying number from an acceptable document (a driver’s license), the name of the state or jurisdiction that issued it, and an image of the document.
For company applicant information (required if your business was established after January 1, 2024), you must include legal name, date of birth, and current address. You will also need to include a unique identifying number from an acceptable document (a driver’s license), the name of the state or jurisdiction that issued it, and an image of the document.
Other forms of acceptable identification documents include identification documents issued by U.S. jurisdiction or local government, and a passport issued by the U.S. Government.
In addition, to comply with the act, if any changes are made to the information (ie – a legal name change or address change), you must file within 30 calendar days. If you realize you have submitted an incorrect report, you must file a corrected BOI within 30 calendar days.