How to Determine the Beneficial Owner of a Company?

FinCEN issued a final rule on August 11, 2026, published in the Federal Register and effective August 14, 2026, that makes permanent the March 26, 2025 interim exemptions.

Under the rule, as summarized on FinCEN's BOI page, companies created in the United States, including Florida LLCs and corporations, no longer file beneficial ownership information reports, and U.S. persons with a FinCEN ID do not need to update it.

The beneficial owner test now matters mainly to foreign reporting companies identifying their foreign owners.

Under the FinCEN rule, a beneficial owner is an individual who directly or indirectly owns or controls at least 25 percent of the ownership interests or who exercises substantial control, such as a senior officer, a person who can appoint or remove officers or directors, or a person who directs important decisions.

Ownership through another entity or a trust can count. Minor children, nominees and agents, employees acting only as employees, people whose only interest is a future inheritance, and creditors are excluded.