Listing Ultimate Beneficiary Owners (UBOs)

Primexis Insights –

11 January 2018

Ordinance 2016-1635 of December 1, 2016 made it an obligation for unlisted companies and legal entities registered with the RCS to disclose information on their beneficiary owners [1].

As of August 1, 2017, unlisted companies registered in the Trade and Companies Register (RCS) are required to provide the Registry of the Commercial Court with a document including information on their beneficial owners.

Who must declare this information ?
Legal entities, registered at the RCS:

Branches of foreign firms
Companies and groups with headquarters in France
All other entities whose registration is mandated by law

Who/what is an Ultimate Beneficiary Owner (UBO):
A beneficial owner is any natural person who directly or indirectly holds more than 25% of the capital or voting rights or, failing that, the person exercising control over the management bodies or the general meeting of shareholders.

What information must be reported ?

What are the terms and the cost of filing [2]?

What are the penalties in case of non-declaration?
The president of the commercial court may require the company to declare the list of beneficial owners.Failure to file with the Trade and Companies Register (RCS) the list of beneficial owners or filing a document with incomplete or inaccurate information is punishable by a fine of € 7500 and 6 months’ imprisonment. These individuals may also incur a management ban.

Nicolas Bondahjagalu
Assitant Accountant
International Business Services Department

References :

1] Order 2016 – 1 décembre 1635 see here
[2] Declaration cost: see here