Penalties for Non-Compliance
Failure to comply with the Act's reporting requirements can lead to substantial penalties. Intentional submission of false or fraudulent beneficial ownership information, or intentional failure to report beneficial ownership information or changes, may lead to civil penalties of up to $500 per day and criminal fines up to $250,000, and/or imprisonment for up to two years. In the context of other criminal activity, these penalties can increase to $500,000 and/or five years imprisonment.
FinCEN will provide access to law enforcement
Although FinCEN is obligated to maintain a secure, private database of the reported information, ownership information will be disclosed under specific circumstances to law enforcement agencies and, with the customer's consent, to financial institutions. (This report is expected to replace the current requirement on banks to collect beneficial ownership information when opening a business bank account).
FinCEN is also expected to validate reported information with other agencies.