A reminder that the obligation to maintain a Register of Persons with Significant Control (“PSC”) commences 6 April 2016 – see Regulatory Roundup 62 for background details; note that the provisional implementation plan issued by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (“DBIS”) in January 2015 had a commencement date of January 2016.
From 6 April 2016 Companies and LLPs (and Societates Europaea) will be required to hold a register of Persons with Significant Control. This register cannot be blank and where companies are confident that there are no recordable individuals or entities then the Register must say “The company knows or has reasonable cause to believe that there is no registrable person or registrable relevant legal entity in relation to the company” (substituting ‘LLP’ for ‘company’ where appropriate) – see Annex 2 of the DBIS Guidance; Annex 4 concerns LLPs.
From 30 June 2016 such entities will have to deliver this information annually to the central public register at Companies House when making a Confirmation Statement (which replaces the Annual Return from June 2016).
The DBIS has published Guidance for Companies and LLPs as well as a Summary Guide about the Register which will assist entities in identifying a PSC (and also addresses the scenario when a firm believes that there is a registrable person but is unable to identify that person).
The only exemptions are for limited partnerships, Charitable Incorporated Organisations and companies whose shares are admitted to trading on a regulated or prescribed market (and in limited circumstances on specified markets in Switzerland, USA, Japan and Israel – see 1.2.4 of the DBIS Guidance for Companies and LLPs).
