The ECCT Act 2023
Having gained Royal assent, the ECCT Act 2023 aims to increase accuracy and transparency with regards to the information held on registers in an attempt to aid economic growth and to reinforce the battle against economic crime. These changes will impact upon the roles of new/existing directors, those who file on behalf of a company, and people with significant control of a company (PSCs).
The first changes came into effect on 04 March 2024 and are as follows;
Registered Office Address
A PO Box will no longer be appropriate as a registered office address
A document addressed to the company is expected to be brought to the attention of a person acting on behalf of the company with the capability of acknowledging the delivery
If an address is not deemed appropriate, it will be changed to a Companies House address
The company will then have 28 days to submit an appropriate address with proprietary ownership evidence, otherwise the strike-off process will begin
Statement of Lawful Purpose
When a company is registered or incorporated, the subscribers must confirm the formation is for a lawful purpose.
The annual confirmation statement will now contain a confirmation that “intended future activities are lawful”
Email Address
Companies House now intend to communicate directly with companies via a generic company email address that will find the attention of a person acting on behalf of the company and is not privy to change following in the case of a change in personnel (the email address will not be made public).
Companies House Powers
Ability to question/remove information which is deemed to be incorrect or fraudulent
Greater checks on company names which may mislead members of the public
Use of data matching to identify inaccurate information
Ability to annotate the registers to inform users where there are potential issues
Failure to respond to a Companies House formal request may result in prosecution, annotation of the company’s record, or financial penalties.
Further changes to come into action throughout 2024
Identity Verification
New companies will be required to verify the identity of all directors and people with significant control (PSCs) directly with Companies House or via an authorised agent (accountants, solicitors, company formation agents)
Fees – effective 01 May 2024
Increases in price for all transactions, likely to have a more substantial effect on group companies
Our UHY FDW corporate compliance specialists can assist our clients with queries you may have in relation to the ECCT Act 2023 or any other corporate compliance matters.
Please contact the team on +353 42 933 9955.
Have you considered outsourcing your compliance requirements? If you would like any information on this, please email info@fdw.ie or complete the form below.