Guidelines on Beneficial Ownership Information for Legal Persons and Legal Arrangements - FSC/GG/003-2 - Dated the 18th of March 2025

Oct 3, 2026

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Guidelines issued pursuant to section 77 of the Financial Services Commission Act require legal persons and legal arrangements registered or applying to the FSC to comply with beneficial ownership information obligations. The document sets out authorities, purpose, scope, and responsibilities, detailing procedures to identify beneficial owners across legal persons, segregated portfolio companies, partnerships, and trusts. It also explains internal registers, Registered Agent records, submission to the Online Business Registry System, recordkeeping, retention, and non-compliance handling.

LanguageEnglish

CategoryResearch & Report

FormatPDF

Pages21

Reading Time53 min

AccessFree to download

Authority, Purpose, and Scope

Authority

Purpose

Scope

Responsibilities

Definitions

Steps in the Determination of Beneficial Owners

Legal Persons

Segregated Portfolio Companies

Partnerships

Internal register of beneficial owners maintained by legal persons and arrangements

Submission of beneficial ownership information to the Online Business Registry System and FSC

Record keeping and retention

Non-compliance

Appendix A. Examples for the identification of beneficial owners

Legal persons-examples

Partnerships-examples

Trusts-example

Guidelines on Beneficial Ownership Information for Legal Persons and Legal Arrangements FSC/GG/003-2 Dated the 18th of March 2025 TABLE OF CONTENTS 1. Authority, Purpose, and Scope ................................................................................................ 3 Authority................................................................................................................................... 3 Purpose ..................................................................................................................................... 3 Scope......................................................................................................................................... 3 Responsibilities ........................................................................................................................ 3 Definitions ................................................................................................................................ 4 2. Steps in the Determination of Beneficial Owners ................................................................... 5 Legal Persons............................................................................................................................ 5 Segregated Portfolio Companies .............................................................................................. 8 Partnerships ............................................................................................................................. 8 3. Internal register of beneficial owners maintained by legal persons and arrangements ...... 10 4. Register of beneficial owners maintained by Registered Agents ........................................... 11 5. Submission of beneficial ownership information to the Online Business Registry System and FSC .................................................................................................................................. 12 6. Record keeping and retention................................................................................................ 13 7. Non-compliance ..................................................................................................................... 13 Appendix A. Examples for the identification of beneficial owners................................................15 Legal persons-examples ........................................................................................................15 Partnerships-examples ......................................................................................................... 19 Trusts-example .....................................................................................................................20 1. Authority, Purpose, and Scope Authority 1. These Guidelines are issued pursuant to section 77 of the Financial Services Commission Act (Act No. 8 of 2023) and apply to all legal persons and legal arrangements registered or applying for registration with the Financial Services Commission (FSC) to facilitate compliance with beneficial ownership information requirements under the following laws: a. The Belize Companies Act (Act No. 11 of 20221 ) b. The Trusts Act2 c. The Limited Liability Companies Act3 d. The Limited Liabilities Partnerships Act4 and e. The Foundations Act.5 Purpose 2. Belize’s legal framework requires companies, partnerships, foundations, trusts and other legal arrangements registered by or applying for registration with the FSC to: • Identify their beneficial owners. • Maintain a register of their beneficial owners (at their registered office and a copy atthe Registered Agent’s office, when applicable) . • Disclose beneficial ownership information to the FSC. 3. These Guidelines lay out the procedures to be followed by a legal person or a legal arrangement to identify its beneficial owners, including where legal person or arrangement is interpo

FAQs

What is the authority and purpose of these FSC Guidelines?

The Guidelines are issued under section 77 of the Financial Services Commission Act and are designed to facilitate compliance with beneficial ownership information requirements, including identifying beneficial owners and disclosing the information to the FSC.

Which entities must follow these Guidelines?

All domestic and foreign legal persons and legal arrangements registered or applying to be registered with the FSC, including companies, limited liability companies, foundations, and partnerships.

What steps and records are required to determine and provide beneficial ownership information?

Legal persons and legal arrangements must identify beneficial owners and maintain an internal register, while Registered Agents maintain a register as well. Beneficial ownership information must be submitted to the Online Business Registry System and FSC, with proper record keeping, retention, and handling of non-compliance.

Oct 3, 2026

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