Insurance (Amendment) Law, 2017 (Law 45 of 2017)

Summary

This is a short 2017 amendment to the Insurance Law, 2010, gazetted as Law 45 of 2017. It does not create new regulatory regimes but tightens the existing insurance licensing framework so that it explicitly ties into the beneficial ownership/corporate services regime under Part XVIIA of the Companies Law (2016 Revision) and Part 12 of the Limited Liability Companies Law, 2016.

• Section 20 (duties of auditor) and Section 21 (insurance managers): Amended so that where an insurance licensee is also a 'corporate services provider' as defined under those Companies Law/LLC Law provisions, auditors' reporting duties and insurance managers' obligations extend to compliance with those beneficial ownership provisions.
• Section 24 (powers of the Authority): Amended so that CIMA's existing enforcement/supervisory powers over compliance with 'the Law' are extended to cover compliance with Part XVIIA of the Companies Law and Part 12 of the LLC Law as well.

In effect, the amendment brings insurance licensees that act as corporate services providers within the scope of CIMA's oversight of beneficial ownership register compliance, aligning insurance sector regulation with the Companies Law and LLC Law beneficial ownership regime introduced around the same period.

Key obligations

• Auditors of insurance licensees that are 'corporate services providers' must report on the licensee's compliance with Part XVIIA of the Companies Law (2016 Revision) or Part 12 of the Limited Liability Companies Law, 2016, in addition to existing duties under section 20 of the Insurance Law, 2010.
• Insurance managers acting as, or managing licensees that are, 'corporate services providers' must ensure compliance with Part XVIIA of the Companies Law (2016 Revision) or Part 12 of the Limited Liability Companies Law, 2016, as part of their obligations under section 21 of the Insurance Law, 2010.
• Insurance licensees that are corporate services providers become subject to the Authority's powers under section 24 of the Insurance Law, 2010 in respect of compliance with Part XVIIA of the Companies Law (2016 Revision) and Part 12 of the Limited Liability Companies Law, 2016.

Applies to

insurance licensees, auditors of insurance licensees, insurance managers, corporate services providers (as defined under Part XVIIA of the Companies Law and Part 12 of the LLC Law)

Deadlines

• 27 November 2017: Law assented to by the Acting Governor and published in Extraordinary Gazette No. 100 (Supplement No. 5).