Non-Beneficial Declaration

TAKE NOTICE that section 337C(l) of the Companies Act, Chapter 81:01, (as amended by the Companies (Amendment) Act No. 6 of 2019) (“the Act”), requires the person whose name is entered in the register of members of a company as the holder of shares in that company but who does not hold the beneficial ownership and the controlling interest in such shares to submit a declaration to the company providing information or particulars of the ultimate natural person who has the beneficial stake in the claims.

Beneficial Declaration

Section 337C(2) of the Act also requires the natural person who ultimately holds the beneficial ownership and controlling interest in the shares to submit a declaration to the company within thirty days of the issue of this notice, indicating the nature of the interest.

Fines/Penalties for Non-Compliance

Section 337C(5) of the Act provides that failure to submit a declaration without reasonable cause constitutes an offence for which the penalty on summary conviction is a fine often a thousand dollars and imprisonment for three years, and a further fine of three hundred dollars for every day in which the offence continues.

Compliance

It is advised that the obligation of holders and beneficial owners of shares to inform the company of any acquisition of, or changes to, beneficial ownership and controlling interest is an ongoing one, which must be fulfilled within thirty days in either case, following sections 337(C) and 337(D) of the Act.

In this regard, it is in the interest of both holders and beneficial owners of the shares in the company to liaise with each other to ensure full compliance with the sections mentioned earlier in the Act.

Legal Advice

Samaan Grove Community Association Limited advises that each homeowner completes the required documentation under the legal advice of their attorney.

The forms can be downloaded below.