In last week’s blog we alerted readers to the two types of anomaly that can occur on the Register of Beneficial Ownership:
- A discrepancy – there is an error on the Beneficial ownership Register; or
- Non-compliance – the Beneficial Ownership details on the register are blank (we believe this to be the case for approximately 20% of obliged entities).
Regulation 20 (3) of SI 110/2019 provides for discrepancies and non-compliance to be reported to the Registrar of Beneficial Ownership by a ‘designated person’(accountants among certain others) or a ‘competent authority/relevant person’ (e.g. Garda, Central Bank and regulatory bodies).
This week we will look at the steps required to notify a discrepancy where accountants and similar ‘designated persons’ must use a Form DN2 to make the formal notification.
There are three basic steps to follow:
- The ‘designated person’ must appoint RBO Liaison Officer(s) who will be responsible for coordinating and authenticating reports of discrepancies to the Registrar on behalf of the ‘designated person’ and liaising with the RBO on day-to-day operational matters.
Liaison Officers can be appointed using a BEN3A Form which can be obtained by sending an e-mail to discrepancies@rbo.gov.ie
- Upon receipt of the completed BEN3A, the RBO will provide the appointed RBO Liaison Officer(s) with a DN2 form and details on how to upload the DN2 to the RBO ShareFile Account (used for data protection reasons).
- The RBO Liaison Officer can then upload the DN2 to the ‘designated person’s’ secure folder in the RBO ShareFile Account.
Only a ‘designated person’ as defined in Section 25, Criminal Justice (Money Laundering & Terrorist Financing) Act, 2010 (as amended), is entitled to report a discrepancy to the Registrar. This is usually the Money Laundering Reporting Officer.
Please note that making the notification may not be the end of your responsibilities. Depending on the circumstances there may be additional reporting duties for the accountant to consider. Where the discrepancy looks less than innocent, perhaps even suspicious, or it may be linked to some other forms of non-compliance by the same entity or persons connected with that entity , the accountant may need to make further reports to relevant authorities.
For more on these obligations, see our latest publication, the AML Policies, Controls & Procedures Manual for 2021.
The Manual contains all the latest requirements relevant to accountants contained in the Criminal Justice (Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing) Acts 2010 to 2021 now fully in force. Future blogs will look at various parts of the new and existing provisions of this legislation.
For more blogs please visit this link and for our publications and manuals and services click here.
