Draft Registration of Overseas Entities Bill
We're seeking views on this draft bill which proposes the introduction of a register of the beneficial owners of overseas legal entities that own land in the UK.
The draft Registration of Overseas Entities Bill sets out provisions to establish a new beneficial ownership register of overseas entities that own UK property. This follows the commitment made at the Anti-Corruption Summit in 2016 to establish such a register, in order to combat money laundering and achieve greater transparency in the UK property market.
An overview document accompanies the Bill, which explains how the register will work and invites comments on some technical aspects of the Bill.
This draft Bill will be of interest to:
- overseas legal entities which own UK property or are considering buying UK property
- professional advisers and service providers for overseas legal entities
- estate agents
- conveyancing solicitors
- civil society and transparency campaigners
To support these proposals, government commissioned research aimed at understanding the potential impacts of the proposed register through qualitative interviews with industry stakeholders:
A register of beneficial owners of overseas companies and other legal entities