What is the BOI Report?

Starting January 1, 2024, most newly formed companies are required by federal law to submit a Beneficial
Ownership Information Report to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Office (FinCEN) within 30 days of
creation or registration. Companies formed before January 1, 2024 have until January 13, 2025 to submit
an Initial BOI Report. Failure to comply with this requirement comes with steep financial penalties and
possible jail time (yikes!), so it’s important to make sure you’re compliant!

Up-to-date information about this requirement (including possible exemptions) is available on FinCEN’s
website. The basic idea is that you’ll need to submit identifying information for any person who has
substantial decision-making or financial control of a company. BOI reports are stored by the federal
government in a secure online database that is not publicly available.

You can hire us to file the initial BOI Report for your company, or you can do it yourself using FinCEN’s
online portal.

Update: December 27, 2024: The Fifth Circuit Court Of Appeals has vacated their stay of the preliminary
injunction. Enforcement of the Beneficial Ownership Information Report requirement is currently paused
and there is no active deadline. Please be sure to check back frequently for updates.

Do I need to file a BOI Report?

FinCEN lists possible exemptions to the BOI reporting requirement here. However, we cannot advise clients
on whether their specific business is exempt. We encourage clients to consult with a business advisor or
attorney.

Note that dissolving your company is not a way to avoid the BOI reporting requirement.

Update - Enforcement of the BOI report requirement has been paused as of December 27, 2024 following
a vacated state of the preliminary Texas Federal Court injunction. Technically the BOI requirement is still
in place. While the injunction currently pauses enforcement, if it is reversed, the original deadline and
potential penalties for non-compliance may still apply. Businesses concerned about privacy may choose
to wait and see if the injunction remains. However, businesses wishing to avoid potential future risks may
decide to proceed with the filing. At this time, we don't know when enforcement of filing deadlines will
resume. We're closely monitoring the situation and will update our FAQs as we learn more.

Who qualifies as a beneficial owner?

A beneficial owner for an LLC is any individual who owns 25% or more of the company, exercises substantial
control over the business (e.g., managers), or receives substantial economic benefits from the business
assets.

For corporations, beneficial owners include individuals in positions such as CEO, CFO, General Counsel, or
anyone with similar authority. This may include any “middle man” who acts as an owner, even if they don’t
hold the majority control. Beneficial owners of a corporation also include any shareholder who owns or
controls 25% or more of the corporation's ownership interest.
 All about BOI FILING
What is a company applicant?

For companies formed on or after Jan. 1, 2024, you’ll need to provide identifying information for the
individual who formed or registered the company with the state. If you’re logged into your account and
filling out the Order Items Requiring Attention, this is probably you!

Do I need to have an EIN to file a BOI report?

How does your company file taxes? If your company has an EIN, you must use it. If you don’t have an EIN
for your company yet, FINCEN recommends obtaining one as soon as possible and submitting your BOI
report as soon as you get one. You can hire us to submit an EIN filing for you, or do it yourself on the IRS
website. If your company files taxes using an individual's SSN or ITIN, those identification numbers are also
acceptable. If your business was formed in a foreign country and does not have an EIN, a Foreign Tax ID
may also be used.

What if I don’t have a U.S. address for my company?

If there is not a U.S. address where your company conducts business, FinCEN allows you to use your
Registered Agent Address, so long as it is on file with your state.

What is a FinCEN ID?

FinCEN issues identification numbers for companies and individuals. When filing a BOI report for a
company, you have the option to request a Company FinCEN ID. Individuals can also have FinCEN IDs,
which can be used in place of Beneficial Owner or Company Applicant identifying information on the BOI
report. We don’t currently offer filing service to obtain individual FinCEN IDs, but you can apply for an
individual FinCEN ID below. The main advantage of an individual FinCEN ID would be if you are listed as a
Beneficial Owner for multiple companies. With a FinCEN ID, you could update just the info associated with
your ID number, rather than updating your BOI Report for each company.

Apply individual FinCEN ID: https://fincenid.fincen.gov/

What information do I need to provide on a BOI Report?

• Filing Information:

• Reporting Company Information:

o You can opt to receive a FinCEN ID (free of charge) for the reporting company.

o Foreign pooled investment vehicle: An exception to an exemption (say that 20 times fast!).
The vast majority of companies should leave this unchecked. Talk to a lawyer if you have
questions about whether this applies to your company.

o Alternate Name: List any doing-business-as (DBA) names, tradenames, or fictitious names that
your company uses to do business. Do not include the acronyms DBA or AKA with the alternate
name.

o Existing Reporting Company: Check this box if your company was formed prior to January 1,
2024.

o A taxpayer identification number for your company: This will usually be an Employment
Identification Number (EIN) provided by the IRS. If you don’t have an EIN for your company
yet, FINCEN recommends obtaining one as soon as possible and waiting to complete the order
information until you get one. You can hire us to submit an EIN filing for you, or do it yourself
on the IRS website. If your entity files taxes using an individual's SSN or ITIN, those
identification numbers are also acceptable. If your entity was formed in a foreign country and
does not have an EIN, a Foreign Tax ID may also be used.

• Company Applicant Information: For companies formed on or after Jan. 1, 2024, you’ll need to provide
identifying information for the individual who formed or registered the company with the state. If
you’re logged into your account and filling out the Order Items Requiring Attention, this is probably
you! You’ll need to provide the full name and either the individual’s FinCEN ID or their date of birth,
photo identification, and home address (either U.S. or international) for at least one Company
Applicant. There may be situations where a 2nd Company Applicant needs to be reported. Check the
FinCEN website or reach out to us if you have questions.

• Beneficial Owner Information: According to FinCEN: “A beneficial owner is an individual who either
directly or indirectly: (1) exercises substantial control over the reporting company, or (2) owns or
controls at least 25% of the reporting company’s ownership interests.” Anyone who influences
decisions (financial or managerial) within your company is likely to be considered a beneficial owner.
As with the Company Applicant, you’ll need to provide identifying information for each beneficial
owner.

How do I upload an identification document?

Each company applicant and beneficial owner is required to submit photo identification as a part of the
BOI Report. When you are filling out your Order Items Requiring Attention form for the BOI Report Filing,
you first need to select the type of photo ID you are providing. A non-expired U.S. driver’s license, U.S.
state or tribal ID, U.S. passport, or foreign passport is required. Next, upload a scan or image of your ID.
The upload can be an image file (for example, a .jpg or .png) or a .pdf document, and the file size must be
less than 4 MB. Then include the Identifying document number on your ID and enter the Issuing
Jurisdiction, which will usually be either the country that issued your passport or the U.S. state or territory
that issued your driver’s license or state ID.

If you’re having trouble uploading a document that meets the document type and file size criteria, there’s
a couple of things you can try. First, make sure you are running the most current version of your internet
browser. Next, try clearing your browser cache and cookies and restarting your browser. And if all else fails
try switching to Google’s Chrome browser, which we’ve found to be the most consistent.

If the scan or picture of your ID is larger than 4 MB, you can usually reduce the file size, though the exact
process will depend on the type of image, the application you’re using to view or edit your image, and
your device’s operating system. We recommend that you do an internet search to find instructions specific
to your configuration for reducing a filesize or compressing an image.

NEW! What's happening with the Beneficial Owner Information Report filing requirements?

Update December 27, 2024: Enforcement of the Beneficial Ownership Information Report requirement
has been paused again due to a vacated stay of the Texas Federal Court Injunction that was filed on Dec 3,
2024.

Technically the BOI requirement is still in place, and the deadline remains January 1, 2025. While there is
currently an injunction pausing the requirement, the risk lies in the injunction being reversed. If reversed,
the original deadline and potential penalties for non-compliance may still apply. Businesses concerned
about privacy may choose to wait and see if the injunction remains. However, businesses comfortable with
FINCEN having their ownership information and wishing to avoid potential future risks may decide to
proceed with filing. At this time, we don’t know when enforcement or filing deadlines will resume. We’re
closely monitoring the situation and will update our FAQs as we learn more.

You can still opt to file your Beneficial Ownership Information Report. If you’ve already hired us to handle
this, we’re continuing to file for our clients, even though the process is slower due to limitations FINCEN
has placed on submission methods.