ARUBA: UBO register
ARUBA: UBO register
January 9, 2023
In July 2022 we have informed you of the changes in the National Ordinance of the Commercial register and the State Ordinance for the Prevention and Combating of Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing (AML/CFT State Ordinance) (LWTF). As part of these changes, a register of ultimate beneficial owners (hereinafter: “UBO register”) is introduced as per January 1st, 2023.
UBO’s are the individuals who ultimately own, control and/or have an interest (of at least 25%) in a company or the individuals who make binding decisions on behalf of the company (such as statutory directors). Please note that a company can have one or more UBO’s.
As of January 1st, 2023, it is mandatory for all UBO’s of entities established in Aruba to be registered in the UBO-register. Failure to comply may result in penalties. These entities include public limited companies, VBA’s, cooperatives, mutual societies, foundations, associations with full legal capacity partnerships, foreign companies, trusts, and similar arrangements. Sole proprietorships, associations without full authority and owners associations are exempt from UBO-register.
Mandatory details of the UBO to be registered are the first name and surname, date and country of birth, address, personal tax ID number, nationality, and the nature and extent of the economic interest of the UBO in the company.
The task of creating and managing the UBO register has been assigned to the Chamber of Commerce of Aruba. Companies registered with the Chamber of Commerce of Aruba before January 1st, 2023, need to register their UBO’s through the MyChamber account on the website of the Chamber of Commerce of Aruba. UBO’s of newly established companies will be registered by the notary as part of the incorporation process.
In the context of privacy, the information in the UBO register is not publicly available. Only authorized organizations (CBA, FIU, lawyers, notaries public, tax advisors, accountants, and car brokers) will have access to the UBO register.
HBN Law & Tax is happy to assist you with the registration process or advise you on any queries you may have regarding the new registration requirements.
