Several states in the US, especially Delaware and Wyoming, have been linked to a form of anonymity for businesses. The secrecy of company ownership has been problematic for the federal government in tracking ownership and ultimately, locating criminals. The US Federal Government has enacted new laws and regulations through the Treasury department via FinCEN that requires new and existing businesses to report the individual owners as well as individuals with a significant impact of control of the company.
Our Recommendation
The reporting is free to businesses and must be done online. Here’s a PDF you can fill out and submit online. With the PDF method, you must use Adobe Reader 8 or higher. Store this PDF securely on your local computer or within secure cloud storage. You’ll want to access, update, and upload it (to FinCEN) from time to time. From our research of BOI Report Filing companies, nothing comes close to the simplicity of the PDF form that FinCEN has created.
Companies will have to report all fictious and DBA names to FinCEN during reporting efforts. These can be during the initial and subsequent update filings.
The database that FinCEN has created and maintains is available to other governmental organizations. There will likely be a process implemented in order for non-Treasury related departments to request information from FinCEN.
What is a FinCEN ID
A FinCEN ID is a new unique identifier of individuals and companies within FinCEN databases. If you are a beneficial owner or a company applicant, we recommend obtaining a FinCEN ID as soon you can. You can now obtain a FinCEN ID for yourself on the FinCEN website, using your Login.gov account. We highly recommend this because the alternative of using a FinCEN ID on BOI report is sharing your personal information (PII), including copies of IDs, with people that you may not fully trust with your data.
Companies reporting to FinCEN will be able to request a FinCEN ID as well. This may come in handy in the future when opening bank accounts, filing with the SEC, or for general (company-level) identity verification purposes.
What Information Will Be Collected?
There are four sections of the filing and those are, filing information, company applicant, company information, and the beneficial owners.
A company applicant is one of two possible individuals who were responsible for the formation or qualification of the business in the US. This information is only necessary for new companies formed on or after Jan 1, 2024.