Seychelles: Beneficial Ownership Act, 2020

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New Requirements for Seychelles IBCs

The Beneficial Ownership Act, 2020 is a new piece of legislation that came into force on 28th August 2020 along with the Beneficial Ownership Regulations. The Act and Regulations impose new requirements on Seychelles IBCs, which should be complied with by 31st January 2021:

A.  A new format for the Register of Beneficial Owner (RBO)

Seychelles IBCs are required to maintain an RBO at the office of its Registered Agent in Seychelles. The Beneficial Ownership Regulations include a new format of RBO that replaces the previous format required under the IBC Act.

The RBO must contain the following information in respect of every beneficial owner of such legal person or legal arrangement:

1. The name, residential address, service address, date of birth and nationality of beneficial owner;
2. Details of each beneficial owner’s beneficial interest, as may be prescribed by regulations;
3. The date on which a person became a beneficial owner;
4. The date on which a person ceased to be a beneficial owner;
5. Where a nominee holds interest on behalf of the beneficial owner-
   • The name, residential address, service address, date of birth and nationality of each nominee holding the interest on behalf of the beneficial owner and the particulars and details of the interest held by the nominee; and
   • The identity of the nominator, and where the nominator is a legal person, the identity of the natural person who ultimately own or controls the nominator.

B.  The Register of Beneficial Owner to be filed with the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU)

A copy of the Register of Beneficial Owner should be submitted to the FIU, and the information will be kept confidential and not publicly accessible. The persons entitled to inspect the RBO are the company’s director, member, or a person whose name is in the RBO (limited to the inspection of the person’s name in the RBO).

A company who fails to maintain a Register of Beneficial Owners under section 5(1) of the BO Act or to maintain accurate and up to date information under section 5(2) of the BO Act commits an offence and is liable to a penalty not exceeding SCR50,000 (USD2,500 approx.) for each such failure (section 5(3) of the BO Act). In case of contravention of section 5(1) or 5(2) of the BO Act, in addition to the penalty upon the company, every director commits an offence, and shall also be liable to a penalty not exceeding SCR50,000 (USD2,500 approx.) for each contravention (section 5(4) of the BO Act).

Should you have any questions about this law, please do not hesitate to contact us at seychelles@icazalaw.com.

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