Limited liability companies and co-operatives: file beneficial owner details immediately to avoid a 300 euro fee

All limited liability companies and co-operatives must file details of their beneficial owners with the Finnish Trade Register. The Finnish Patent and Registration Office (PRH) will send a reminder letter in the summer or early autumn to companies whose beneficial owner details are missing from the register. If the company does not file the details by the deadline given in the letter, the PRH will impose a negligence fee of 300 euros on the company.

What does the obligation mean?

All limited liability companies and co-operatives must file their beneficial owner details with the Finnish Trade Register.

Beneficial owners are people who own more than 25 per cent of the company's shares or hold more than 25 per cent of the company's voting rights. Read more about beneficial owners at prh.fi.

The details must also be filed if

the company is inactive
the company has no beneficial owners, or the beneficial owners are not known to the company.

The obligation does not apply to listed companies or mutual real estate limited companies.

Proceed as follows if you receive a reminder letter

File your notification of beneficial owners by the deadline stated in the letter.

The notification is free of charge.

File your notification online at ytj.fi in Finnish or Swedish. Read our filing instructions at prh.fi.

As soon as the beneficial owner details have been registered, your company will receive a register extract at the postal address recorded in the Finnish Business Information System at ytj.fi.

What happens if I do not file the details?

If the company does not file beneficial owner details by the deadline in the reminder letter, the PRH will impose a negligence fee of 300 euros on the company and send a decision on the fee.

The Legal Register Centre collects the fee and transfers it to the state.

The negligence fee is based on the Finnish Trade Register Act.

The information is needed to prevent money laundering

The purpose of filing beneficial owner details is to prevent money laundering. The obligation is based on the Finnish Trade Register Act. The same obligation applies to companies in all EU countries.

If the beneficial owner details have not been filed, it may complicate the company's business. For instance, banks, accounting firms and insurance companies must identify their customers and check the beneficial owner details.

The PRH has regularly reminded companies through various channels about filing and keeping beneficial owner details up to date. The PRH has also sent letters to companies that have failed to file their beneficial owner details.

Further information

Frequently asked questions about missing beneficial owner details and the reminder letter

Trade Register Advisory Service on missing beneficial owner details:
tel. +358 29 509 5597, Mon–Fri 9.00–12.00