ACTIVITIES OF THE REGISTRY OF EFFECTIVE HOLDERS IN ITALY SUSPENDED UNTIL SPRING

On Dec. 7, 2023, the Regional Administrative Tribunal for Lazio (Fourth Section) granted the precautionary petition filed by three trust companies, suspending the effectiveness of the ministerial decree of Sept. 29, 2023, which had initiated the operation of the Register of beneficial owners, until March 27, 2024, the date set for the substantive hearing of the appeal.
The provision stipulated that by Dec. 11, the "Register of Beneficial Owners" was to be implemented with data on the beneficial ownership of corporations, trusts and related legal institutions, including trust mandates. The plaintiffs argue that the inclusion of trust mandates among legal institutions akin to trusts is not legitimate, and they challenge the system of access by private individuals to the registry data, considering it a threat to the protection of people's privacy.
Reference is also made to the judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Union (Nov. 22, 2022, Joined Cases C-37/20 and C-601/20), which emphasized the precedence of the right to privacy over the purposes of combating money laundering and terrorist financing.

With the suspension of the registry's operation, the application of penalties for those who had not complied with the obligation to report data by Dec. 11, 2023, also falls.
The March hearing is an opportunity for practitioners to address unresolved issues and assess the need for an extension of the deadline, considering requests for clarification from various professional groups.

Our staff remains available for more informations.