Register of beneficial owners is an information system administered by the Ministry of justice and maintained by courts, in which beneficial owners of legal entities and trust funds are registered.
A beneficial owner is generally either so called final beneficiary, i.e. natural person who is directly or indirectly entitled for substantial part of trust funds assets, or so called person with final influence, i.e. person who can independently directly or indirectly apply its decisive influence in the trust fund.
A beneficial owner of the trust fund is further always its founder, trustee, person entitled to supervise the trust fund, beneficiaries and persons from the which the beneficiaries may be appointed (i.e. also person who are not beneficiaries, but may be potentially appointed according to the statutes, e.g. children of the founder).
The obligation to file the motion to enter the information into the register lies with the trustee. There is, however, an automatic transmission of data from the trust fund register (information on founder, trustee and beneficiaries) into the register of beneficial owners. In case the trust fund does not have any other beneficiaries, there is no need to file a separate motion.
In case the court finds discrepancy between information entered in the register of beneficial owners and reality, it shall call the trustee to either remove or disprove the discrepancy. In case the trustee does not comply with the call, the court may fine the trustee with an up to 500.000,- CZK fine.
The information on beneficial owners are not publicly accessible. The information may be provided to a person, who proves its legal interest in relation to prevention of legalisation of crime proceeds.
The information may further be provided to courts, executors, tax offices, police, etc.