What is Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) and the required filing?
Many companies in the United States are being asked to report information about the beneficial owners of their business. Beneficial owners are the individuals who ultimately own or control the company. This is a reporting requirement from the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), a bureau of the U.S. Department of Treasury. The deadline for said filing is January 1, 2024.
What is involved in the filing process?
Filing can be done, free of charge, from the FinCEN website. The form can be found by going to FinCEN’s BOI E-Filing website (https://boiefiling.fincen.gov) and selecting “File BOIR.”
What is the latest update regarding the filing requirements?
In early December 2024, the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) was found by the federal district court to be unconstitutional and orders were given prohibiting the enforcement of the CTA and the BOI reporting rule. Currently the BOI reporting rule cannot be enforced, however, companies are being encouraged to be prepared to file the BOI report if the hold is lifted.
Should I file a report or wait?
This should be an informed decision made by each individual owner for their business. If the BOI is able to be enforced again, it has been reported that there will be hefty fines for each day that the report is not submitted. Filing should not be a lengthy process. We at Upshot Bookkeeping Solutions, LLC. have errored on the side of caution and filed the reports for our business. We encourage all business owners who may possibly need to file to research this requirement and make an informed decision.
You can find additional information at the following links:
https://www.fincen.gov/boi-faqs#B_6
https://fincen.gov/sites/default/files/shared/BOI-Informational-Brochure-April-2024.pdf