Beneficial Ownership filing explained
Why BO is the keystone of CIPC compliance since July 2024.
**Beneficial Ownership (BO)** filing records the natural persons who ultimately own or control a company. Since 1 July 2024 it is the **keystone** of CIPC compliance.
## Why it is the keystone
You **cannot file your annual return** without a completed BO record. A missed BO blocks the annual return, which can trigger deregistration — a cascade that ends with a frozen bank account.
## What you need
- ID details of beneficial owners (usually anyone holding 5%+ or with effective control).
- A simple ownership breakdown.
## Penalties
Non-compliance can attract penalties of up to **10% of turnover or R1 million**.
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