According to the latest update on November 28, 2022, from the Cyprus authorities, access to the Register of Beneficial Owners is no longer available for the general public. This is an attempt by the Cyprus authorities to abide by the judgement of the ECJ (European Court of Justice).

According to the Department of Registrar of Companies and Intellectual Property, the relevant information will continue to be provided to the obliged entities in line with the applicable procedure by submitting an additional solemn declaration in advance, confirming that the information on the Beneficial Owners is requested for the purpose of performing customer due diligence.

In May 2018, the Fifth AMLD (Anti-Money Laundering Directive) introduced a new amendment to the Fourth, stating that EU Member States are obliged to fully declare the Beneficial Owner registers making them available to the public.

However, the ECJ’s view on the subject is that public free access results in considerable interference with the protection of personal data and rights to private life enshrined in Articles 7 and 8 of the Charter.

Along with Cyprus, other EU member states have already started to implement this amendment denying public access to Beneficial Owner registers. 

 The main issue in this case is that there is a Beneficial Owner’s Registry in Cyprus but this is not available to the general public following the decision of the European Court of Justice

Should you wish to learn more, get in touch at info@paraschou.com.cy.