Treasury Department may fine small businesses up to $10,000 if they don't file this new report
Small businesses and their owners could face penalties of $10,000 or more if they don't comply with a new U.S. Treasury Department reporting requirement by year's end — and evidence suggests many haven't yet complied.
The Corporate Transparency Act, passed in 2021, created the requirement. The law aims to curb illicit finance by asking many businesses operating in the U.S. to report beneficial ownership information to the Treasury's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, also known as FinCEN.
Many businesses have a Jan. 1, 2025 deadline to submit an initial BOI report.
This applies to about 32.6 million businesses, including certain corporations, limited liability companies and others, according to federal estimates.
The Treasury Department did not respond to CNBC's request for comment on the number of BOI reports that had been filed to date.
The data helps identify the people who directly or indirectly own or control a company, making it «harder for bad actors to hide or benefit from their ill-gotten gains through shell companies or other opaque ownership structures,» according to FinCEN.
«Corporate anonymity enables money laundering, drug trafficking, terrorism and corruption,» Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen said in a January announcement of the BOI portal launch.
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Here's the kicker: Businesses and owners that don't file may face civil penalties of up to $591 a day, for each day their violation continues, according to FinCEN. (The sum is adjusted for inflation.) Additionally, they can face up to $10,000 in criminal fines and up to two years in
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