Beneficial Ownership Transparency Act, 2023 (Act 13 of 2023)

Status per the Cayman Islands legislation register (legislation.gov.ky) (as at 2026-07-09)

Summary

This Act consolidates and updates the Cayman Islands' beneficial ownership disclosure framework, replacing the previous patchwork of beneficial ownership provisions scattered across various entity-specific laws (Companies Act, LLC Act, LLP Act, etc.) with a single unified regime. It applies to "legal persons" as defined in the Act, which includes companies, limited liability companies (LLCs), limited liability partnerships (LLPs), limited partnerships, foundation companies, and exempted limited partnerships incorporated or registered in the Cayman Islands.

Key Requirements

Identification of beneficial owners: Legal persons must identify their beneficial owners (individuals owning or controlling 25% or more of shares/voting rights/partnership interests, or otherwise exercising ultimate effective control) and reportable legal entities, and maintain this information through their corporate services provider on a beneficial ownership register.
Notice procedures: The Act sets out notice procedures requiring beneficial owners and other relevant persons to confirm or supply required particulars.
Restrictions notice regime: It establishes a restrictions notice regime for non-compliance.
Rectification power: It grants the Grand Court power to rectify the register.
Access rules: It sets rules for access to beneficial ownership information, including for law enforcement and via international information-sharing agreements.
Penalties: It creates administrative fines and criminal penalties for breaches.

The Act does not take effect immediately upon passage: section 1(2) provides that it comes into force on a date (or dates, for different provisions) to be appointed by Cabinet order, meaning some obligations (such as those tied to sections 4 and 12(1)-(3)) may commence at different times. Transitional and savings provisions preserve existing exemptions and beneficial-owner definitions from predecessor legislation until the corresponding new provisions commence.

Because the source text elides significant portions of Parts 3 through 7 (registers, restrictions notices, access, penalties, and miscellaneous provisions), some specific mechanics of these sections could not be fully verified from the text reviewed.

Key obligations

Legal persons falling under section 12(1)(a)-(d) must provide their corporate services provider with written confirmation of their category and required particulars.
Legal persons under section 12(1)(e) must identify every individual beneficial owner, every reportable legal entity, and relevant trustees, and provide their required particulars in writing to their corporate services provider, notifying the provider in writing once particulars are confirmed.
A legal person must give written notice to identified and suspected registrable beneficial owners and reportable legal entities requiring them, within 30 days of receiving the notice, to state their status and confirm, correct, or supply required particulars.
A legal person must give written notice to persons holding a relevant interest in it (or in another legal person that may be a reportable legal entity) requiring a response, including supply of known required particulars, within 30 days of receipt.
Registrable beneficial owners and reportable legal entities receiving notice must supply the required information as set out in section 9.
Corporate services providers must review particulars supplied and are responsible for establishing and maintaining the beneficial ownership register (section 13) and keeping it current (section 14).
Legal persons/corporate services providers must notify relevant changes to beneficial ownership information (section 15).
Corporate services providers must issue a restrictions notice where beneficial ownership disclosure obligations are not met (section 19), triggering restriction consequences under section 20.
Corporate services providers have a duty to forward correspondence from the competent authority or Registrar (section 25) and must respond to requests for information under section 24.
Failure to comply with obligations under the Act may result in administrative fines or criminal penalties (sections 26-27).

Applies to

companies, limited liability companies, limited liability partnerships, limited partnerships, foundation companies, exempted limited partnerships, corporate services providers, licensed financial institutions, licensed fund administrators

Deadlines

30 days after receipt of notice: A person given notice under section 8(1) or 8(2) as a registrable beneficial owner must state their status and confirm/correct/supply required particulars within 30 days of receiving the notice.
30 days after receipt of notice: A person given notice under section 8(3)/8(4) regarding a relevant interest must state whether they know the identity of a registrable beneficial owner and supply required particulars, at the legal person's expense, within 30 days of receipt.
such date as may be appointed by Order made by Cabinet: The Act (or different provisions of it) comes into force on a date, or different dates for different provisions/matters, to be appointed by Cabinet order rather than on passage.

Beneficial Ownership Transparency Act, 2023 (Act 13 of 2023)

Summary

Key Requirements

Key obligations

Applies to

Deadlines

Related documents

Topics

Version history

source file (current)