The cabinet plans to introduce a public registry in 2024 that will disclose the names of beneficial owners of all federal corporations, as stated by Industry Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne.According to Blacklock’s Reporter, the Senate Banking committee has approved a registry bill without making any changes, which guarantees the bill will become law by Christmas.“For too long, we had some bad actors who used Canadian corporations in the way that I think Canadians would find very disturbing,” testified Champagne. Money launderers, tax dodgers and organized crime “will probably not want to come to Canada or at least use corporations in the way we may have seen in the past where people were using our corporations,” he added.Bill C-42 An Act to Amend the Canada Business Corporations Act would mandate federally registered companies annually provide information about individuals who hold "significant control," which is defined as a minimum of 25% of the shares. Failure to comply with this requirement could result in penalties of up to $1 million in fines and up to five years in prison.On June 22, the Commons passed the bill without a dissenting vote.“The bill received the unanimous support of the House of Commons,” said Champagne. “I must tell you, it’s not every day that you see that. It sends a strong signal to everyone in this country that we are serious about doing something.”In a May 10 briefing note, the Industry department stated the Beneficial Ownership Information Registry would be available online and keyword searchable beginning in 2025. However, Champagne told the Senate Banking committee he anticipated an earlier launch in spring 2024.“You must have a date for when the system is going to be up and running,” said Senator Elizabeth Marshall (NL). “Totally,” replied Minister Champagne.“Do you have a date?” asked Marshall. “We are saying the beginning of the year is the time,” replied Champagne. “The system will be ready.”According to official estimates, out of 2,951,629 businesses nationwide, a total of 458,790 are federally registered. Bill C-42 applies only to companies registered under federal law, which represents a fraction of enterprises in Canada.“Incorporation is a shared jurisdiction in Canada and federal incorporation is less than 15% of all incorporations in Canada,” Justin Brown, senior director with the department of Finance, testified on June 12 at the Commons Industry committee. “This bill would represent an enormous step by implementing a federal registry for corporations. However, there remain 85% of corporations that would not be covered.”In a March 22 submission to the Senate Banking committee, Transparency International Canada (TIC) advocacy group said public registries have been effective in other countries.“These registries have become more urgent as transnational criminal networks and foreign state actors seek to exploit liberal democracies and hide dirty money,” said TIC. “Currently, 108 countries have made commitments to publicly accessible registries.”
