FinCEN–SBA Coordination on Beneficial Ownership Registration Act

This bill makes the Treasury’s anti-money-laundering office (FinCEN) and the Small Business Administration work together to get clear, simple guidance to small businesses about the federal “beneficial ownership” reporting rules. They must sign a formal agreement, share information widely, post links on SBA’s homepage to the right FinCEN pages, offer materials in English and Spanish, and host town halls and webinars so businesses know how to comply. They also have to warn businesses about scams pretending to be part of this reporting process and use SBA field offices and FinCEN liaisons to reach people in person . Congress says this effort is needed to help stop criminals who hide who really owns companies to commit crimes like money laundering and fraud.

There are strict timelines: meet within 30 days, sign the agreement within 90 days, post it online within 7 days, and then meet every 6 months to review problems and reasons some businesses aren’t complying. FinCEN and SBA must also send monthly updates to Congress about what outreach they did, how many companies they reached, and how many are complying .

• Who is affected: Small businesses and other “reporting companies,” plus trade groups that serve them.
• What changes: More plain-language guidance, multilingual materials, easy-to-find links on SBA’s site, in-person and online events, and scam warnings related to beneficial ownership reporting .
• When: Initial meeting in 30 days; agreement in 90 days; agreement posted within 7 days after signing; check-ins every 6 months; reports every 30 days .