Scottish Limited Partnerships and Scottish Partnerships could soon find themselves within the scope of the PSC (People of Significant Control) regulations.
The PSC regulations require companies to identify anyone who:
- holds, directly or indirectly, more than 25% of the shares
- holds, directly or indirectly, 75% or more of the voting rights
- holds the right, directly or indirectly, to appoint or remove a majority of the board of directors
- has the right to exercise or actually exercises significant influence or control
- has the right to exercise or actually exercises significant influence or control over the activities of a trust or firm that, under the law by which it is governed, is not a legal person; and the trustees of that trust or the members of that firm (in their capacity as such) hold, directly or indirectly, more than 25% of the shares
PSC information must be notified to Companies House and maintained in the company's Register of People of Significant Control.
In September 2016, the Treasury published a consultation paper on the transposition of the Fourth Money Laundering Directive (4MLD) into UK law.
As well as impacting on the UK's current PSC regime by requiring the information to be current, PSC information will have to be filed in real time rather than annually through the confirmation statement. It is also likely to be extended to other types of entity that are currently exempt. These include Scottish Partnership and Scottish Limited Partnerships.
UK companies must implement 4MLD by 26 June 2017 so these types of organisations would be well advised to begin considering their position on this and plan accordingly.
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.
