In 2021, Congress passed the Corporate Transparency Act, which requires many entities to submit beneficial ownership information reports to the U.S. Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network.
Agricultural corporations subject to this reporting requirement include corporations, limited liability companies, partnerships, or other types of corporations formed by filing with the Secretary of State or other similar office.
Additionally, this reporting requirement may also apply to farms that are operated through a business trust or foundation established by filing with the Secretary of State or other similar agency. The application of reporting requirements to these types of entities depends on the law that created these entities.
Entities that existed before January 1st must complete their reporting by January 1st, 2025. Entities created or registered after January 1 must complete the report within 90 days of filing and registration. The Beneficial Ownership Information Report does not need to be submitted again unless the information originally reported needs to be updated or corrected.
The report requires the following information for each entity beneficiary:
The identification number may be obtained from a current driver’s license, passport, identification card, or other identification issued by a state, U.S. territory, municipality, or tribe. If none of these are available, you can use a foreign passport. In addition to the identification number, a copy of the document providing the identification number must be submitted with the report.
An individual is considered a beneficial owner if he or she effectively controls the entity or owns at least 25% of the entity. This law is not intended to include persons who have effective control over an entity solely by virtue of their employment status with the entity. In some situations, children are not considered reporting beneficial owners.
In addition to information about beneficial owners, the company must provide its name and the name in which it does business, and its current address. For companies founded after January 1st, you must provide the same identifying information as the person who founded the company.
US Treasury FinCEN website Provides information about the rules and regulations for creating this report.
