UBO register
- UBO register: bases and principles
- Ultimate beneficiary: who is it about?
- The royal decree on the operating modalities of the UBO register
- How can you prepare?
- Fill out information about the UBO register
- FAQ and useful documentation
1. UBO register: foundations and principles
The Law of September 18, 2017 on the prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing and on the restriction of the use of cash (hereinafter the "Law") provides for the establishment of a register of beneficial owners in Belgium (referred to in English as "UBO," which stands for "Ultimate Beneficial Owner"; hereinafter the "UBO register").
The Act transposes the European Directive 2015/849 on the prevention of the use of the financial system for the purpose of money laundering and terrorist financing (the "4th AML Directive"), which requires member states to adopt legislative and administrative measures that:
- companies and other legal entities incorporated within their territory obtain and maintain adequate, accurate and up-to-date information on their beneficial owners, including details of the economic interests held by the beneficial owners;
- there would be a central registry of information on the beneficial owners of those entities to facilitate access to that information.
The Act thus provides for the obligation (1) for companies, (international) NPOs and foundations to obtain and maintain adequate, accurate and up-to-date information on their beneficial owners and (2) for directors to electronically send data on beneficial owners to the UBO Register within the month.
2. Ultimate beneficiary: who is it about?
The Law lists different categories of beneficial owners according to the legal entity to which they are affiliated. The Law distinguishes between three types of legal entities, namely corporations, (international) NPOs and foundations, and trusts and other legal entities similar to trusts.
Are considered beneficial owners in the case of corporations:
- The natural person(s) holding directly or indirectly a sufficient percentage of the voting rights or ownership interest in this company, including the holding of bearer shares;
An interest held by a natural person of more than twenty-five percent of the voting rights or more than twenty-five percent of the company's shares or capital is considered an indication of a sufficient percentage of voting rights or direct interest. Refer to the frequently asked questions on our website for more information on the identification of indirect beneficial owners (see section 5.3). - The natural person(s) who control(s) this company through other means (e.g. Shareholders' Agreement, right to appoint the members of the board of directors, veto power).
- The natural person(s) belonging to senior management, if after exhausting all possible means and provided there are no grounds for suspicion, none of the said persons has been identified, or if there is any doubt as to whether the identified person(s) is/are the beneficial owner(s) (e.g. The steps taken to identify the first two categories, resulting from investigations carried out).
Are considered ultimate beneficiaries in the case of (international) NPOs and foundations:
- board members;
- the persons authorized to represent the association;
- The persons in charge of the daily management of the (international) association or foundation;
- the founders of a foundation;
- the natural persons or, if these persons have not yet been designated, the category of natural persons in whose main interest the (international) non-profit association or foundation was founded or operates;
- any other natural person who exercises ultimate control over the (international) association or foundation through other means.
Are considered beneficial owners in the case of trusts, fiduciaries and other legal arrangements similar thereto:
- the founder;
- the fiduciary manager(s) or trustee(s);
- the protector, if any;
- the beneficiaries, or if the persons who are the beneficiaries of the fiduciary or trust have not yet been designated, the class of persons in whose principal interest the fiduciary or trust was created or operates;
- any other natural person who, by virtue of being a direct or indirect owner or through other means, exercises ultimate control over the fiduciary or trust.
3. The royal decree on the operating modalities of the UBO register.
Article 75 of the Law authorizes the King to define the operating modalities of the UBO register.
The Royal Decree on the operating modalities of the UBO Register (the "Royal Decree"), was published on Aug. 14, 2018, and came into force on Oct. 31, 2018.
That decision will include all the operating modalities of the UBO register, specifically:
- what information must be transmitted to the UBO registry depending on the type of beneficial owner involved;
- Who should transmit that information on behalf of the legal entities concerned and according to what modalities;
- Who will have access to the information in the UBO registry and according to what modalities such access will take place;
- what derogations exist for the data in the UBO register not to be accessible or only partially accessible;
- what controls will be exercised in connection with the obligation to transmit data to the UBO register and what sanctions, if any, will be imposed
- In what manner the data transferred to the UBO register will be secured and processed.
4. How can you prepare?
The royal decree took effect on Oct. 31, 2018. You can:
- A legal representative or a proxy with an e-ID who completes the information mentioned in the Royal Decree through the MyMinFin electronic platform on behalf of your organization;
- determine which category from the above section 2 your ultimate beneficiary belongs to;
- Have accurate and comprehensive information about your organization's beneficial owners and any legal entities your beneficial owners use to control your organization;
- Have documentary evidence that your information is adequate, accurate and current;
- Provide procedures within your organization so that any change in information about your beneficial owners is transmitted to the UBO Registry within the month.
An FAQ is 
available (PDF, 750.57 KB).
available (PDF, 750.57 KB).
5. Complete information on the UBO register
You have time until September 30, 2019 to register your final beneficiaries for the first time. You can register your final beneficiaries now by signing up at the application (external link) on the MyMinFin portal (for citizens) or MyMinfinPro (for legal representatives).
These are the various user guides to help you in this procedure:
