The new FinCEN guidelines surrounding beneficial ownership reporting don’t have to be cumbersome with solutions from FinCEN Advisors. These best practices for SMBs help you establish the right FinCEN compliance framework.
Key takeaways:
Follow these seven best practices for FinCEN compliance for SMBs:
- Understand beneficial ownership reporting
- Conduct a business risk assessment
- Create compliance policies and procedures
- Include a plan for ongoing reviews and audits
- Bring in new technology for efficiency
- Improve recordkeeping practices
- Focus on transparency
Small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) must carefully balance compliance with growth, but some regulations can be hard to understand. Working with FinCEN Advisors easily streamlines and simplifies the process, ensuring ongoing compliance and efficiency.
The Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) plays a pivotal role in safeguarding the financial system from illicit activities, making it crucial for SMBs to grasp its significance and navigate the regulatory framework effectively. The new beneficial ownership reporting requirements, which started in 2024, are important to follow closely to avoid penalties.
This guide covers seven best practices for SMBs that will help you handle all the complexities of compliance and implementing the right processes into operations. This way, you can reduce the risk of error and keep focusing on your core business activities and goals.
7 best practices for developing a compliance framework
Crafting a robust compliance framework is the first step for SMBs to tackle FinCEN requirements, especially in beneficial ownership reporting. The first step involves a comprehensive understanding of the new guidelines, emphasizing the significance of transparency and accountability. Remember that FinCEN Advisors can handle these steps for your business to streamline reporting.
Here is a compliance checklist to develop your framework:
- Understand beneficial ownership reporting
The new beneficial ownership reporting requirements began in 2024. Reporting companies must submit beneficial ownership details to FinCEN before January 1, 2025, if they were already in existence; businesses created in 2024 have 90 days from registration, and businesses created in 2025 and later have 30 days.
You’ll need to report each beneficial owner’s name, address, date of birth, and ID information to FinCEN to comply. This information must be up-to-date, accurate, and complete. It must be updated with subsequent reports only when it changes. Potential penalties for willful failure to comply include up to $10,000 in civil penalties, and up to two years in prison, and/or up to $10,000 in fines in criminal penalties.
- Assess your risks
Then, conduct a thorough risk assessment, identifying potential areas of exposure to financial crimes and illicit activities. Evaluate whether your practices have any gaps that get in the way of beneficial ownership identification, information gathering, and reporting.
This assessment lays the groundwork for tailoring compliance procedures to the specific needs and vulnerabilities of the business. Every SMB is different, so you need to ensure your plan is customized to your operations and goals.
- Consider new compliance policies
Establishing clear and well-documented policies and procedures is the next best practice to implement. Define all roles and responsibilities within the organization, designating individuals responsible for overseeing compliance efforts and ensuring that employees at all levels understand their roles in maintaining adherence to FinCEN regulations. This includes training programs to educate staff on the importance of compliance, the specific requirements of FinCEN, and the potential consequences of non-compliance.
- Find a partner for ongoing reviews and audits
Regular internal audits and reviews are important components of a proactive compliance framework. They help you notice gaps or problems before they escalate and stay prepared for upcoming changes. FinCEN Advisors offers solutions to help you set up a plan for regular reviews.
Establish a schedule for periodic assessments to ensure that your internal processes align with evolving FinCEN requirements. This ongoing evaluation enables you to adapt to regulatory changes and improve your compliance protocols.
- Learn about new technology for efficiency
As an SMB, you may fear any new regulations because of the new administrative processes and the time they require. You already have enough on your plate managing employees and running the business.
Technology can help. Consider bringing in a new technology or platform, such as compliance management software and automation tools, which can streamline the entire process, reduce the risk of errors, and enhance the overall efficiency of compliance efforts. Software can help you ensure you’re not losing too much valuable time working on the new requirements. FinCEN Advisors helps you accomplish this step seamlessly.
- Improve recordkeeping practices
A strong compliance system requires both organization and due diligence. Make sure your recordkeeping practices can keep up with compliance requirements. For example, information about the company and its beneficial owners must always stay updated with FinCEN to avoid problems.
So, this requires you to know when an ID is expiring or when an owner gets a new address or changes their name. Technology tools can be beneficial for setting up notifications for expirations and improving your overall organizational workflows.
- Stay transparent
One of the goals behind any compliance initiative is to promote transparency, and the new beneficial ownership reporting rules are no different. In fact, they were implemented as part of the Corporate Transparency Act to help reduce illicit activities in the corporate environment.
Always encourage open communication channels where employees feel comfortable reporting potential issues or seeking clarification on compliance matters. This collaborative approach ensures compliance is ingrained in the company’s culture and mission.
Embracing and improving compliance with FinCEN Advisors
Developing a compliance framework and internal processes for FinCEN requirements, including beneficial ownership reporting, demands a proactive and holistic approach. By investing time and resources into understanding, implementing, and regularly reviewing these processes, SMBs can meet regulatory standards and fortify their operations against risks.
Prioritizing compliance also contributes to the overall growth of SMBs as they continue to face regulatory changes and amendments. Keeping up with new laws and trends in the marketplace is key to staying ahead of the game.
Simplify this entire process by partnering with FinCEN Advisors. We know what steps you need to take to ensure compliance and stay organized, and we take away the headaches involved in the new beneficial ownership reporting guidelines.
Contact us to learn more about FinCEN compliance requirements for SMBs.
