Business owner: submit this information, avoid penalty

The Patent and Registration Office (PRH), which maintains the Trade Register, says in a press release that it will be sending these companies a reminder letter during the summer and early autumn. Any company that fails to submit a beneficial ownership declaration by the deadline will be charged a €300 penalty.

Since the start of 2025, the PRH has been able to fine companies that fail to correct deficient or erroneous Trade Register records, despite having received notices to do so. The Legal Register Centre collects the charge and passes the funds to the state.

Most companies must notify the Trade Register of their actual beneficial owners, that is, the people who exercise ownership or control over the company. The requirement to declare beneficial ownership does not apply to, for example, sole traders, listed companies, or mutual real-estate companies.

The beneficial ownership declaration is free of charge and is submitted through the Business Information System (YTJ).

The PRH says beneficial ownership data is needed to combat money laundering and terrorism financing.

Banks, insurance companies, accounting firms, and public authorities use beneficial ownership data to fulfil know your customer (KYC) and other statutory obligations. A lack of registered beneficial ownership information can create problems when, for example, dealing with banking or insurance.

“The obligation to declare beneficial ownership arises from the Trade Register Act. Companies in all EU member states are subject to the same obligation,” says Jussi Huolman, legal counsel at the PRH, in the press release.

The PRH has been registering beneficial ownership data since July 2019. The transition period for mandatory beneficial ownership declarations ended in summer 2020. The PRH says the majority of the more than 310,000 companies required to file have already submitted their beneficial ownership information to the Trade Register.

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