Time Is Running Out - The Economic Crime (Transparency And Enforcement) Act 2022

Published date16 January 2023
Subject MatterCorporate/Commercial Law, Corporate and Company Law
Law FirmCollas Crill
AuthorMr Michael Morris, Nuno Santos-Costa, Fiona Wilson, Nin Ritchie, Nicholas Davies and Amy Davies

Time is running out

As a follow up to our October 2022 article on The Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement Act) 2022 , with the 31 January 2023 deadline now looming for all overseas entities that have owned property in England and Wales since 1 January 1999 or in Scotland since 8 December 2014 to register on the Register of Overseas Entities, we now consider the implications of failing to properly grasp the requirements of UK's Economic Crime (Transparency and Enforcement) Act 2022 (the Economic Crime Act).

What you need to do now

The Economic Crime Act imposes a number of requirements on non-UK entities (overseas entities) owning UK property, which include the need for:

  • Registration with Companies House;
  • Identification and verification of beneficial owners and, when necessary, managing officers of the overseas entities; and
  • Annual updates to Companies House.

The criminal consequences of non-compliance

The Economic Crime Act created a raft of criminal offences, some of which are punishable by a term of imprisonment, which include:

Offences that may be committed by the overseas entity and every officer:

  • Failure to resolve inconsistencies on the register;
  • Failure to register having been required to do so by notice from the Secretary of State;
  • Failure to deliver required information to the registrar where that overseas entity has made a disposition between 28 February 2022 and 31 January 2023;
  • Failure to register an...

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