What's important to know about the new law on the register of beneficial owners

From 1 November 2021, the new Act on Registration of Beneficial Owners partly entered into force in Norway. The new rules impose a duty for enterprises that operate or are registered in Norway, including public and private limited liability companies, to obtain, retain and register information about beneficial owners of the enterprise. The main purpose of the rules is to ensure transparency about ownership to strengthen the fight against money laundering and other crime.

Below is a summary of the main duties pursuant to the Act:

  • Beneficial owners are natural persons who are considered to have ultimate ownership or control, by owning more than 25% of the shares, controlling more than 25% of the voting rights, has the right to appoint or remove more than half of the board members or exercise control in another way.
  • The Act applies to most enterprises that operates or are registered in Norway, including Norwegian registered foreign businesses (NUF) and companies admitted to trading on Euronext Growth Oslo as well as managers of foreign trusts or similar enterprises
  • The enterprises must (i) identify its beneficial owners, (ii) obtain and retain information about its beneficial owners (including name, identification number, country of residency and citizenship) and (iii) obtain and retain documentation for the identification.
  • If there are no beneficial owners, this must also be documented.
  • The rules apply to each individual company in a group, i.e. it is not sufficient to have information for the parent company, even if the information will be identical for wholly owned subsidiaries.
  • At present, a central register is not yet in place in Norway. However, the enterprises must nevertheless identify its beneficial owners, obtain necessary information and documentation, and retain this internally.
If you have any questions to the registration of beneficial owners, please contact:

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