Poll responses of 3,600 small business and compliance professionals indicate growing awareness of beneficial ownership rule

MINNEAPOLIS: #wolterskluwer--Small businesses, legal and compliance professionals are increasing their levels of readiness to comply with new U.S. beneficial ownership reporting requirements, according to the results of a recent poll by Wolters Kluwer CT Corporation.

When asked about their level of preparedness for meeting the new reporting rule, which took effect January 1, 2024 as part of the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA), 26% percent of 3,631 respondents characterized their organizations’ readiness as between 75% to 100% in a January 23, 2024 webinar-based poll. The same question, posed during a Wolters Kluwer beneficial ownership webinar on November 15, 2023, indicated a level of just 18% readiness among 2,528 respondents polled.

Accordingly, the prevalence of respondents indicating a total lack of preparedness dropped from 38% in November’s webinar to 31% in January’s poll. Both polls also show substantial readiness level increases compared to a Wolters Kluwer survey from mid-2023, when 74% of respondents representing companies subject to the reporting requirement indicated they had only become aware of the rule “by having taken the survey.”

“There is a noticeable uptick in the market, not only in terms of greater awareness but also in preparations among those entities that realize they are subject to the beneficial ownership reporting requirements,” said Rupak Venugopal, Vice President, Beneficial Ownership, for Wolters Kluwer’s Financial & Corporate Compliance division. “But despite these advances in awareness, there remains a considerable lack of awareness among businesses that will be subject to the rule, and we are working diligently to help change that dynamic.”

The U.S. Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) estimates that the rule will impact approximately 32.6 million reporting companies in 2024 alone, with five million new reporting companies formed and registered every year going forward. There are significant consequences for non-compliance, including fines of up to $10,000 and possible incarceration.

Wolters Kluwer recently launched a Beneficial Ownership Platform solution to simplify filing and compliance for both single-entity as well as multiple-entity filers.

“We already have over a thousand companies filing reports across our applications and are seeing more interest and adoption every day now that the regulation is live,” added Venugopal.

Wolters Kluwer continues its engagement in developments around the new beneficial ownership rule, promoting the sharing of best practices among all industry participants. It has launched a series of webinars hosted by national industry associations and recently began a collaboration with Summit Technology Group to generate greater awareness about BOI compliance. Its resources include an easy-to-use, self-guided eligibility quiz—along with BOI compliance content—to help ensure that impacted entities can effectively prepare for and navigate the new requirements within the target timeframe to meet initial as well as ongoing compliance obligations. More information is available on the dedicated Wolters Kluwer resource page, “Beneficial Ownership Information Compliance from CT Corporation.”

About Wolters Kluwer

Wolters Kluwer (EURONEXT: WKL) is a global leader in information, software, and services for professionals in healthcare, tax and accounting, financial and corporate compliance, legal and regulatory, and corporate performance and ESG. We help our customers make critical decisions every day by providing expert solutions that combine deep domain knowledge with specialized technology and services.

Wolters Kluwer reported 2022 annual revenues of €5.5 billion. The group serves customers in over 180 countries, maintains operations in over 40 countries, and employs approximately 20,900 people worldwide. The company is headquartered in Alphen aan den Rijn, the Netherlands.

For more information, visit www.wolterskluwer.com, follow us on LinkedIn, Facebook, and YouTube.

Fonte: Business Wire