A UBO or Ultimate Beneficial Owner is the person who enjoys the benefits of ownership even though the title to some form of property is in another name. Beneficial ownership is distinguished from legal ownership, though in most cases, the legal and beneficial owners are one and the same.
UAE UBO Key Points
- A Real Beneficial Owner is defined as whoever that ultimately controls the legal person, whether directly or indirectly, through at least 25% of the capital or voting rights or through effective control
- If no Real Beneficiary is determined, the physical person who is in charge of the Senior management shall be deemed as the Real Beneficiary
- Existing companies operating in the UAE and covered under the scope of the Regulation will be required to create and maintain: 1.) Register of Real Beneficial Owners; and 2.) Register of Partners or Shareholders including details of nominal management members
- There is a requirement for information in these registers to be submitted to competent licensing authorities within 60 (sixty) days from the day following the date of publication of the Regulation or from the date of licensing
- UBO law is applicable to any legal person licensed or registered in the State including commercial free zones in the UAE
- UAE UBO Regulation excludes companies that are wholly owned by the federal or local government
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