Beneficial Ownership Hub

The Companies Act, through the Companies Amendment Act 2017, requires beneficial ownership information from companies limited by shares. In reviewing this requirement, the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) determined that all types of companies needed to provide beneficial ownership information and that the beneficial ownership regime at the Companies Office of Jamaica (COJ) needed to be much more extensive. As such the COJ in partnership with local and international stakeholders embarked on a project to revise the current
beneficial ownership requirements in the Act and to add further provisions to ensure that the beneficial ownership regime meets international standards set by the FATF.

These amendments should ensure greater transparency in corporate governance and reduce the risk of legal persons such as companies being abused and used for money laundering and terrorism financing. These amendments were passed into law by the Companies Amendment Act 2023.