On Sunday, the U.S. Department of Treasury announced that it will no longer enforce Beneficial Ownership Information requirements for U.S. citizens under the Corporate Transparency Act.
The Treasury Department is announcing today that, with respect to the Corporate Transparency Act, not only will it not enforce any penalties or fines associated with the beneficial ownership information reporting rule under the existing regulatory deadlines…
— Treasury Department (@USTreasury) March 2, 2025
A subsequent post from the department stated that it will “not enforce any penalties or fines against U.S. citizens or domestic reporting companies or their beneficial owners after the forthcoming rule changes take effect either.”
The Corporate Transparency Act was a law implemented during the Biden administration to combat financial crimes such as money laundering and various tax frauds. However, many have pointed to issues with the law and the need for a rollback of the initiative.
This Act required businesses to submit information regarding the beneficial owners, meaning those who own 25% or more of a company or have significant control over the operations, according to Newsweek.
This Act requires more than 32.6 million people to submit various pieces of identification, but it only affects small businesses and leaves larger companies untouched, per Fox News 9.
Companies with more than 20 full-time employees or more than $5 million in revenue are exempt from these requirements, per Newsweek.
Secretary of the Treasury Scott Bessent said in a statement that this decision is a “victory for common sense” and praised President Donald Trump for his role in the process.
“Today’s action is part of President Trump’s bold agenda to unleash American prosperity by reining in burdensome regulations, in particular for small businesses that are the backbone of the American economy.”
Trump also posted on Truth Social about the decision, stating that the Act was “outrageous and invasive” and that the decision to roll back the policy is “Exciting news!”
“This Biden rule has been an absolute disaster for Small Businesses Nationwide. Furthermore, Treasury is now finalizing an Emergency Regulation to formally suspend this rule for American businesses. The economic menace of BOI reporting will soon be no more,” he continued in the post.