Frequently Asked Question
If you are an overseas individual, company or other entity and you owned land or property in the UK since 2005, or are acquiring land and property in the future, you have a requirement to register details of the beneficial owner, or in some cases management of the overseas entity.
You require a UK regulated agent to verify your data. This Virtual Tax Partner can assist you both in the process of gathering the correct information for entry into the Register and also verifying that and making the Registration for you.
You are looking to purchase a new property, also in London: the rules for this will be slightly different in that you will need to register your ownership details before you can formally register the property on the UK's Land Registry.
The Register of Overseas Entities launched on 1 August 2022.
Overseas entities who own, buy, sell, transfer property or land in the UK are required to register with Companies House to:
- Provide details of their registrable beneficial owners or if no individuals meet the beneficial ownership conditions, the managing officers of the entity.
- Meet annual compliance obligations which require this information to be kept up to date.
After registering, the overseas entity receives a unique Overseas Entity ID which it used with the Land Registry when it buys, sells, transfers, leases or charges UK property or land.
The rules apply retrospectively to overseas entities who bought property or land on or after:
- 1 January 1999 in England and Wales.
- 8 December 2014 in Scotland.
- 1 August 2022 in Northern Ireland.
Entities that have disposed of property or land after 28 February 2022 also need to register and give details of that disposal.
Non-compliance with this regime could result in:
- Being unable to register or dispose of land.
- Fines of up to £2,500 per day.
- Prison sentences of up to five years.
There is a six month transitional period for registrations to be completed from when the register comes into force.
Still need help? Open a support ticket here
Our sister service, www.rossmartin.co.uk has created a freeview guide which also provides more detail on the Registration of Overseas Entities requirement.