The Principality of Monaco has updated and strengthened its measures to combat money laundering, terrorist financing and corruption by adopting Act 1.503 of 23 December 2020, now supplemented by Act 1.520 of 11 February 2022 and two ministerial orders 2022-84 and 2022-85 dated 14 February 2022.
Pursuant to these texts, the authorities, services, bodies and professionals legally empowered for this purpose have free access to all the information contained in the registers of economic beneficiaries and trusts in the context of the implementation of their due diligence obligations. The communication of this information is conditional upon the submission to the Trade and Industry Register of a declaration signed by the legal representative of the applicant or by a duly authorised person within the applicant.
The information in the register of beneficial owners concerning the name, month and year of birth, country of residence, nationality of a beneficial owner, as well as the nature and extent of the beneficial interests held, may also be communicated to any interested third party upon a reasoned request to the Trade and Industry Register Department.
The request for consultation, the reasons for it and the link between it and the prevention of money laundering and terrorist financing must be notified to the legal persons required to communicate information on their beneficial owners and to the beneficial owners themselves.
From the date of receipt of the notification, the legal representatives of any structure required to communicate information on its beneficial owners (civil companies, commercial companies, common interest groups), or any agent with a special power of attorney shall have a period of two months in which to make a request to restrict access to the register for the information concerning them.
This request must be made by application to the Minister of State or the President of the Court of First Instance and must be justified by the existence of exceptional circumstances relating to respect for private life or the preservation of the confidentiality of scientific, economic, professional and cultural activities. Account is also taken of the name of the beneficial owner, his state of health, his scientific, economic, professional, cultural, political, associative, artistic or sporting activities, his reputation, his wealth, his personal history or that of his family. The request may also be justified when the economic beneficiary is a minor, incapacitated, or when access to the register could expose the beneficiary to a disproportionate risk, a risk of fraud, extortion, harassment, kidnapping, blackmail, violence or intimidation.
The request for restricted access must be accompanied by the corresponding supporting documents, on risk of inadmissibility, and a copy of the request must be sent to the Trade and Industry Register Department in addition to the payment of a fee of 500 euros. If the application for restriction is accepted, the restriction of access to the register is authorised for a period of five years. A reasoned request for renewal may be made at the latest one month before the expiry date of the previously authorised restriction of access. If the application is rejected, the temporary access restriction in force during the examination of the application shall expire two months after the rejection decision. Consultation of the register is carried out in the presence of an official of the Trade and Industry Register Department.
With regard to the register of trusts, after notification of the request for information to the trustee, the authorities, services, bodies and professionals legally empowered for this purpose, the transmission of the required information is carried out by the issue of an extract from the register of trusts by the Minister of State. For this purpose, a signed declaration must be filed by the legal representative of the applicant or by a duly authorised person within the applicant's company with the Trade and Industry Register Department and a fee of 15 euros must be paid. The request must be reasoned and justify the existence of a legitimate interest in the fight against money laundering and terrorist financing. It must also specify the purpose for which access to the information is requested.
The information in the register of trusts concerning only the name, month and year of birth, country of residence and nationality of the beneficial owner and the nature and extent of the beneficial interest held shall also be accessible in the following two cases:
- when the trust is constituted or transferred in the
Principality, to any other person who can demonstrate a legitimate
interest in the fight against money laundering, terrorist financing
and corruption;
- when the written request concerns a trust or similar legal arrangement which holds or has a controlling interest in a company or other legal entities than those referred to in the third paragraph of Article 21 of Act 1. 362 of 3rd August 2009 as amended (commercial companies and economic interest groupings registered in the Trade and Industry Register as well as civil companies registered in the special register kept by the Trade and Industry Register Department) or those registered in a Member State of the European Union, by direct or indirect ownership, in particular by means of bearer shares or through control by other means, to any natural person or legal entity making such a request.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought about your specific circumstances.