Corporate Transparency Act Frequently Asked Questions

What is the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA)?

The Corporate Transparency Act (CTA) is designed to prevent malign actors, such as companies that seek to conceal their ownership of businesses in the United States in an effort to facilitate illicit activity such as money laundering, financing of terrorism, tax fraud, and other acts of foreign corruption, from harming the national security interests of the United States and its allies.

Does my company have to report its beneficial owners?

While certain types of entities are exempt, if you are a small corporation or LLC, you will likely be required to report your beneficial ownership information and your company applicant information to FinCEN. A key factor in determining whether your company will have to report is whether you had to file a document with your state's secretary of state or a similar office to create your company or, for foreign companies, register it to do business in the United States.

Who is a beneficial owner of my company?

A beneficial owner is any individual who exercises substantial control over your company, or who owns or controls at least 25 percent of your company.

Does my company have to report its company applicants?

There may be more than one individual who qualifies as a company applicant; (1) the individual who directly files the document that creates, or first registers, the reporting company; and (2) the individual primarily responsible for directing or controlling the filing of the relevant document.

• Company formed before January 1, 2024 – file within one year of regulations becoming active (January 1, 2025, deadline).
• Company formed between January 1, 2024, and January 1, 2025 – 90 calendar days to report after formation.
• Company formed after January 1, 2025 – 30 days from formation to report.

What specific information does my company need to report?

A reporting company will need to provide: ( 1) its legal name and any trade name or DBA; (2) its address; (3) the jurisdiction in which it was formed or first registered, depending on whether it's a U.S. or foreign company; and (4) its Taxpayer Identification Number (TIN).

For each of your company's beneficial owners and each company applicant (if required), your company will need to provide the individual's: ( 1) legal name; (2) birthdate; (3) address (in most cases, a home address); and (4) an identifying number from a driver's license, passport, or other approved document for each individual, as well as an image of the document that the number is from.

What if there are changes to or inaccuracies in reported information?

Your company will have 30 days to report any changes to reported information. For updates, the 30 days start from when the relevant change occurs. For corrections, the 30 days start after you become aware of, or have reason to know of, an inaccuracy in a prior report.

How can Evans & Davis help me?

We want to help you stay compliant and avoid penalties with these new regulations. Our legal fees for completing the filing process are $500 per entity. These fees should be paid by your business. To move forward with the process, please follow this link to provide the information we will need to file for you.

Please click here to securely provide the information we will need to file for you.

Although Evans & Davis, PLLC, believes this is accurate information as of today, the reporting requirements are subject to change. Evans & Davis, PLLC is not liable for failure to report or incorrect reporting due to reliance on this notification alone. If you, or someone you know, needs additional information, the FenCEN website has posted the complete rules regarding reporting, and an Attorney should be consulted prior to deciding when and what to report.