Section 373 - Registration of documents

(1) There is established by this Act a register to be known as the Central Register to capture beneficial ownership data of legal persons and arrangements.

(2) The Registrar shall

(a) keep and maintain the Central Register both in manual and electronic formats; and

(b) enter in the Central Register,

(i) particulars required to be submitted for registration under subsection (2) of section 13;

(ii) particulars required to be submitted for registration under subsection (6) of section 35;

(iii) particulars required to be submitted for registration under paragraph (c) of subsection (1) of section 330; and

(iv) particulars required to be submitted for registration under subsection (2) of section 331;

(v) any other information that the Registrar may require including, information on beneficial ownership.

(3) The Registrar shall

(a) collaborate with other authorities for purpose of maintaining, verifying and updating the Central Register;

(b) on request and in a timely manner, make information entered in the Central Register available to the relevant authorities for inspection; and

(c) in line with open data best practices, make an electronic format of the Central Register available to members of the public for inspection.

(4) Subject to section 378 where, under a section of this Act, a document or particulars are required to be registered by the Registrar, registration shall be effected by inserting the document or making the appropriate entries of the particulars in the register maintained at the Office of the Registrar.

(5) For the purposes of a provision of this Act, a document has not or particulars have not, been delivered to the Registrar for registration until the appropriate registration fee has been paid to the Registrar.

(6) Where the Registrar is of opinion that the document or particulars delivered to the Registrar for registration,

(a) contain any matter contrary to law,

(b) by reason of an error, omission or a mis-description have not been duly completed,

(c) do not otherwise comply with the requirements of this Act, or

(d) contain an error,

the Registrar may request that the document or particulars be appropriately amended or completed and re-submitted, and may refuse to register the document or particulars until appropriately amended or completed; and in that event the document has not or the particulars have not, been delivered for registration until re-submitted as appropriately amended or completed.

(7) For the purpose of this section, “competent authority” means public authorities with designated responsibilities for combating money laundering or terrorist financing, in particular, the Financial Intelligence Centre and the authorities that have the functions of investigating or prosecuting money laundering and associated predicate offences and terrorist financing.

(8) The Minister may, by legislative instrument, make Regulations to prescribe the

(a) mode and format for the submission of particulars required to be entered in the Central Register;

(b) procedure for companies to maintain up to date and accurate records of beneficial ownership;

(c) procedure for collection, authentication, verification or rectification of information entered in the Central Register; and

(d) penalty for a default in complying with reporting requirements in respect of the Central Register.