Key POINTs
From 1 April 2026, any person with a legitimate interest may request BO information.
From 2 January 2026, a person may apply for an exemption from providing BO information.
Competent Authority includes:
the Attorney General;
the Governor of the BVI;
the BVI Financial Investigation Agency;
the BVI Financial Services Commission;
the BVI International Tax Authority;
and such other body as the Governor may designate.
An obliged entity is an entity that has obligations to carry out customer due diligence or enhanced due diligence under the BVI AML regime.
Beneficial ownership information access is limited to direct or indirect ownership or control of 25% or more of the shares or voting rights.
ACCESS TO BENEFICIAL OWNERSHIP (“BO”) INFORMATION
The BVI Business Companies and Limited Partnerships (Beneficial Ownership) (Amendment) Regulations, 2025 came into effect on 1 July 2025. These amended Regulations prescribe requirements for accessing beneficial ownership information in registers which have been filed and allows the Registrar of Corporate Affairs to place restrictions on a beneficial owner’s interest.
While the Amendments have been brought into force with immediate effect, the extended ability to access information is subject to a transition period. Applications to inspect or obtain information will not be accepted until 1 April 2026.
Rights to access
The following persons and organizations have rights of access to information in the beneficial ownership register:
– Competent authorities
– Law enforcement agencies
– Parties to the Exchange of Notes between BVI and UK Governments
Persons with legitimate interests who can demonstrate that the purpose is to:
– Investigate money laundering, terrorist financing, or proliferation
– Entities fulfilling their customer due diligence obligations under anti-money laundering legislation.
– Individuals or entities connected to a person convicted of money laundering, terrorist financing, or related offenses.
Persons demonstrating legitimate interest in the information for the specific purpose of combating money laundering (AML), terrorist financing (CFT), or proliferation financing (CPF) include:
- Financial Institutions & Designated Professionals: Banks, lawyers, and corporate service providers conducting mandatory customer due diligence (CDD).
- Forensic Investigations: Persons seeking to establish a link between a BVI entity and a person convicted of (or charged with) a financial crime.
- NGOs & Media: Civil society organizations or journalists actively involved in investigating financial crime (subject to strict vetting).
Access Procedure:
– Requests for BO information must be submitted electronically through VIRRGIN.
– The request must include:
– The applicant’s name and contact details (and registration number if applicable).
– A statement detailing the purpose for requesting the information, including demonstrating a legitimate interest.
– The name of the legal entity to which the request relates.
– If known, the name of the beneficial owner related to the legal entity.
– A declaration that the information will be used solely for the stated purpose.
– The Registrar is obligated to process legitimate interest requests within 12 business days.
Entity Notification & Objection Process
Once a request is received, the Registrar shall notify the legal entity that a request has made, including the purpose for which the information will be used.
Notice to the entity is not required if the request comes from a regulated ‘obliged’ entity (any business or professional regulated under the BVI’s Anti-Money Laundering framework).
Upon receipt of the notice from the Registrar, the entity then has five days, from date of receipt, to object providing evidence and giving reasons such as:
– the request is not made for a proper purpose;
– the request contains misleading or inaccurate information; or
– any of the following circumstances (the Exemption Circumstances) apply:
– the person reasonably believes that any disclosure of particulars of beneficial ownership information would place them or any member of their immediate family at serious risk of fraud, kidnapping, blackmail, extortion, harassment, violence, intimidation or other similar harm;
– the particulars of beneficial ownership information relate to a child or an individual who otherwise lacks legal capacity;
– other special reasons exist warranting refusal, if, having regard to any other exceptional circumstance, the Registrar forms the opinion that an exemption is reasonably necessary (on the basis of such undertaking as specified by the Registrar and for a defined period only);
– the disclosure of the particulars of beneficial ownership information will, or is likely to, raise or affect issues of national security in the BVI or elsewhere; or
– the request is of such a nature that the Registrar considers that it is not in the public interest to grant the request;If an objection is made, the Registrar will notify the Requestor and review the request before making a decision whether to grant or decline the request. The Requestor has 21 days to appeal the Registrar’s decision. The decision may be overturned on appeal or if it is upheld, the Registrar’s decision will be valid for three years from the date of that decision.
Further to the above, the Objection Process is a two staged process and follows a strict 5+5 day timeline:
– Stage 1 (Initial Objection): The entity must file an Objection Notice within 5 business days of the Registrar’s notice.
– Stage 2 (Showing Cause): Once that notice is filed, the entity has a further 5 business days to submit a formal application to the Registrar “showing cause” with specific evidence and reasons why the request should be denied.
Exemptions from Disclosure
From 2 January 2026, entities or individuals can apply (fee $50) to the Registrar for an exemption on the same objection grounds set out above. If granted, the Registrar can set time limits or conditions which block disclosure under legitimate‑interest access but still allows law‑enforcement access.
The exemption application must:
– give the name and contact details of the applicant and, if different, the name and contact details of the beneficial owner to whom the beneficial ownership information relates;
– state which of the Exemption Circumstances apply;
– provide evidence of the existence or likely occurrence of the circumstance being relied on in support of the application; and
– provide such other information to assist the Registrar in making a proper assessment of the application, including the reasons for any belief held.
Where an application for exemption from the disclosure of beneficial ownership information is granted, the Registrar may provide for the exemption to apply for a specific period or impose such other conditions as the Registrar considers fit.
What You Should Do
You should review your structure and consider your eligibility for automatic exemptions (fund subsidiaries, listed parent, govt‑owned, regulated foreign trustee). If you face significant privacy or security concerns, you should consult your Relationship Manager to arrange for exemption application. . Finally, you should prepare for any expected legitimate-interest requests and keep accurate BO records.
Please contact your Portcullis Relationship Manager or one of our representatives for assistance or further information should you have any questions relating to these amendments.
Contact Us
Portcullis (BVI) Ltd
Portcullis Chambers
4th Floor, Ellen Skelton Building
3076 Sir Frances Drake Highway
Road Town, Tortola VG1110
+1 284 494 5296
www.portcullis.group
保得利英屬維京群島(BVI) 最新消息
重點摘要
自2026年4月1日起，任何具合法利益者均可申請調閱實質受益權 (BO) 資料。
自2026年1月2日起，個人或法人得申請免除揭露其BO資料之義務。
具調閱BO資料權限之政府機構：
– BVI檢察總長
– BVI總督
– BVI金融調查局 (FIA)
– BVI金融服務委員會 (FSC)
– BVI國際稅務局 (ITA)
其他經BVI總督指定之機關
「指定義務主體」係指依BVI反洗錢制度負有執行客戶盡職審查或強化審查義務之主體。
BO資訊之調閱範圍僅限於直接或間接持有或控制公司25％或以上股份或表決權者。
實質受益權 (BO) 資料存取制度更新
《2025年英屬維京群島 (BVI) 商業公司及有限合夥 (實質受益權) (修訂)條例》已於2025年7月1日正式生效。
該修訂條例明確規範業經提交登記之實質受益權 (BO) 名冊之調閱程序，並授權BVI公司註冊處得對實質受益人之權益施加限制。
惟該修訂條例設有資料調閱申請之過渡期，將自2026年4月1日起正式開始受理。
資料調閱權限
下列為具調閱BO登記冊資料之有權者:
– 主管機關
– 執法機關
– 經BVI與英國政府間互惠協議所授權之政府機構
此外，具合法利益且能證明下列調閱目的者，亦得提出申請:
– 調查洗錢、恐怖主義融資或擴散融資行為；
– 依反洗錢法規履行客戶盡職審查義務之機構；或
– 涉及業經洗錢、恐怖主義融資行為或相關犯罪而被定罪之個人或機構。
資料調閱申請程序
所有資料調閱之申請須透過 VIRRGIN 系統以電子方式提交。申請內容應包含:
– 申請人姓名、聯絡方式及註冊編號 (如適用)；
– 申請目的之聲明，並須說明合法利益之依據；
– 欲申請資料調閱之公司名稱；
– 欲申請資料調閱公司之相關實質受益人姓名 (若已知悉)；以及
– 資料調閱僅用於申請書所載目的之聲明。
所有具合法利益之資料調閱申請案件，公司註冊處應於接獲申請後12個工作日內處理之。
通知被申請資料調閱之公司與異議
公司註冊處於接獲資料調閱申請後，應通知相關公司並說明申請之目的。
惟若申請人係為BVI法律規定之反洗錢、反恐融資或防止擴散融資規範之指定義務主體 (含商業或專業主體)，則無須通知該公司。
被申請資料調閱之公司得於接獲通知後5日內提出異議，並附具理由或相關證據，包括但不限於：
– 該申請並非為正當目的提出；或
– 申請內容具誤導或錯誤資訊；或
– 出現下列任何豁免情形者：
– 被申請人合理認為相關資料之揭露將使其本人或其直系親屬構成嚴重詐欺、綁架、勒索、騷擾、暴力、恐嚇或類似危害之風險；或
– 涉及未成年人或無行為能力者之資料者；或
– 其他足以構成拒絕理由之特殊情況；或
– 涉及國家安全疑慮者；或
– 由註冊處裁定揭露不符公共利益者。
如被申請資料調閱之公司提出異議，註冊處應通知原申請資料調閱人，並於審查後決定是否准予調閱。申請人得於21日內提起上訴，若上訴遭駁回，該決定自核定日起3年內有效。
提出異議之時限 (5 + 5工作日)
異議程序分為兩個階段，各為5工作日為準：
– 第一階段 (初步異議): 被申請資料調閱之公司須於收到註冊處調閱通知後5工作日內，提交異議通知書。
– 第二階段 (具體說明理由): 提交異議通知書後之5工作日內，須再正式向註冊處提出異議申請，並檢附具體證據及理由。
BO資料揭露之免除
自2026年1月2日起，法人或個人得依前述異議事由，向公司註冊處申請免除揭露 (申請費用USD 50)。若申請獲准，公司註冊處得就「合法利益調閱」之申請，視情況裁定免除資料揭露之期間或設置限定條款，惟不影響執法機關之存取權限。
免除揭露之申請內容須包括下列資訊：
– 申請人及相關實質受益人之姓名與聯絡方式；
– 適用免除揭露之事由；
– 適用免除揭露事由之佐證；以及
– 其他有助註冊處審酌之補充資料。
註冊處得依情況裁定允予免除揭露之期間或設置限定條款。
後續應行措施
敬請 貴客戶檢視現有BVI公司架構，確認是否屬於自動免除揭露之情形 (如基金公司之子公司、上市公司之控股公司、官股機構或受監管之外國信託機構)。如有重大保密性或安全風險之考量，敬請聯繫您的保得利關係經理。
此外，敬請 貴客戶應確保實質受益權資料之完整性與即時更新，以利因應後續可能之資料調閱申請。
保得利聯繫資訊
Portcullis (BVI) Ltd
Portcullis Chambers
4th Floor, Ellen Skelton Building
3076 Sir Frances Drake Highway
Road Town, Tortola VG1110
+1 284 494 5296
www.portcullis.group
