The parliamentary joint committee has concluded in its pre-legislative scrutiny report that the draft Registration of Overseas Entities Bill, while generally well drafted, needs certain improvements. A possible loophole for trusts should be avoided by clarifying how this Bill, or the fifth anti-money laundering directive, will apply to land held by trusts. The report also recommends closer alignment with the register of People with Significant Control and stricter scrutiny of exemptions.
The Registration of Overseas Entities Bill will establish a publicly-accessible register of the beneficial owners of overseas entities purchasing land, and of those who already own land. The draft Bill was published on 24 July 2018 for consultation until 17 September. The Government plans to introduce the Bill to Parliament later in 2019 and to launch the register in 2021.
The joint committee was appointed by the House of Commons and the House of Lords in February to conduct pre-legislative scrutiny of the draft Bill.
Chairman of the joint committee, Lord Faulks QC, said: ‘We welcome this much-needed legislation as one of the vital tools required to create a hostile environment for money launderers who want to use the UK property market to hide unlawful funds. The legislation is well drafted, but there are still some loopholes in the draft Bill which, if unaddressed, could jeopardise the effectiveness of this important piece of legislation’. See bit.ly/2JUXB8A.
The parliamentary joint committee has concluded in its pre-legislative scrutiny report that the draft Registration of Overseas Entities Bill, while generally well drafted, needs certain improvements. A possible loophole for trusts should be avoided by clarifying how this Bill, or the fifth anti-money laundering directive, will apply to land held by trusts. The report also recommends closer alignment with the register of People with Significant Control and stricter scrutiny of exemptions.
The Registration of Overseas Entities Bill will establish a publicly-accessible register of the beneficial owners of overseas entities purchasing land, and of those who already own land. The draft Bill was published on 24 July 2018 for consultation until 17 September. The Government plans to introduce the Bill to Parliament later in 2019 and to launch the register in 2021.
The joint committee was appointed by the House of Commons and the House of Lords in February to conduct pre-legislative scrutiny of the draft Bill.
Chairman of the joint committee, Lord Faulks QC, said: ‘We welcome this much-needed legislation as one of the vital tools required to create a hostile environment for money launderers who want to use the UK property market to hide unlawful funds. The legislation is well drafted, but there are still some loopholes in the draft Bill which, if unaddressed, could jeopardise the effectiveness of this important piece of legislation’. See bit.ly/2JUXB8A.
