On December 23, 2024, The Federal Government was successful in appealing their case to the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals. The court issued a stay on the nationwide injunction against enforcement of the Corporate Transparency Act. Small businesses are once again required to report beneficial owners to the FinCEN.
Updated December 27, 2024
UPDATE: Corporate Transparency Act Suspended AGAIN
The court's ruling immediately reinstated filing deadlines; however, FinCEN (Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, which is part of the Internal Revenue Service) released a statement extending compliance deadlines in light of the period when the preliminary injunction was in effect.
Extended Deadlines
- Reporting companies that were created or registered prior to January 1, 2024 have until January 13, 2025 to file their initial beneficial ownership information reports with FinCEN. (These companies would otherwise have been required to report by January 1, 2025.)
- Reporting companies created or registered in the United States on or after September 4, 2024 that had a filing deadline between December 3, 2024 and December 23, 2024 have until January 13, 2025 to file their initial beneficial ownership information reports with FinCEN.
- Reporting companies created or registered in the United States on or after December 3, 2024 and on or before December 23, 2024 have an additional 21 days from their original filing deadline to file their initial beneficial ownership information reports with FinCEN.
- Reporting companies that qualify for disaster relief may have extended deadlines that fall beyond January 13, 2025. These companies should abide by whichever deadline falls later.
- Reporting companies that are created or registered in the United States on or after January 1, 2025 have 30 days to file their initial beneficial ownership information reports with FinCEN after receiving actual or public notice that their creation or registration is effective.
Non-compliance Penalties
- Intentional non-compliance with the law carries up to a 2-year felony penalty plus heavy fines.
- Civil penalties are up to $591 per day for each day of non-compliance ($500 plus allowed inflation).
What's Next?
Further action by the Fifth Circuit, or possibly the US Supreme Court, could potentially affect the compliance deadlines. Other efforts and lawsuits around the country remain ongoing, including one by the Small Business Association of Michigan who says they are, "committed to continuing our lawsuit against this violation of your 4th amendment rights."
