Failure to report on PSC register risks criminal prosecution

Since 26 June 2017 Companies House has been contacting, usually by formal letter, those individuals and companies who have not complied with the PSC Regulations.

Now harsher action is to be taken as it is a criminal offence not to comply with the new transparency of ownership rules.

This next phase to ensure that individuals and companies comply with the new regulations this means Companies House will pass on details of potential criminality to the Insolvency Service’s Criminal Enforcement Team, to investigate offences under Part 21A of the Companies Act on behalf of the Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), and issue criminal proceedings where appropriate.

The requirements to keep a PSC register are set out in Part 21A of the Companies Act 2006.

A person with significant control (PSC) is someone who owns or controls a company, and is also known as ‘beneficial owners’. Most PSCs are likely to be people who hold more than 25% of shares in the company, more than 25% of voting rights in the company and have the right to appoint or remove the majority of the board of directors.
The Register of People with Significant Control Regulations 2016 (PSC) was introduced in April 2016. It requires all UK companies (including charitable companies and subsidiaries of exempted companies) and limited liability partnerships (LLPs) and certain Scottish partnerships to keep a PSC register, and people who control companies or other relevant entities will be subject to a disclosure requirement.

Around 98.5% of companies have complied with PSC regulations, Companies House confirmed. There are still around 50,000 companies flouting the rules.