Disclosure of Beneficial Ownership

You will no doubt have seen the announcement of the agreement which has been reached between the UK and Jersey regarding the exchange of beneficial ownership information with law enforcement and tax authorities.  The UK has concluded similar agreements with all Crown Dependencies and Overseas Territories.

Jersey’s Chief Minister has reiterated Jersey’s continued co-operation with the UK Government on tax transparency.  In 2013 Jersey supported the UK’s drive to enhance international transparency and Jersey has been working closely with them since then.  Although pressures in the last week have increased the speed of the process, this agreement is part of that ongoing work.

Jersey has been collecting and exchanging information on beneficial ownership since 1989.  Jersey has simply agreed to a quicker turnaround on requests from the UK law enforcement and tax authorities.  Urgent cases will be dealt with in one hour, while routine requests will take 24 hours.

Jersey can approach this latest commitment with confidence given the capabilities of its Company Registry, which is a well-established and robust depository for beneficial ownership information, and which provides a solid foundation for Jersey to meet this latest step forward in the UK-driven transparency agenda.

You can read more about how Jersey’s Financial Services Commission will deal with requests in the attached note.