Transparency Register

The Transparency Register is a central online register managed by the Federal Administrative Office, which discloses the beneficial owners of companies, associations, and legal arrangements in accordance with the Money Laundering Act (GwG). Beneficial owners are considered to be natural persons who directly or indirectly hold more than 25% of the shares or voting rights or exercise control in a comparable manner. Companies are required to actively report this information—name, date of birth, place of residence, nationality, as well as the nature and extent of the economic interest—unless a notification fiction from the commercial register, partnership register, or association register applies. Since the 2021 reform, the Transparency Register functions as a full register; thus, the automatic adoption for almost all legal entities is eliminated, and a timely registration obligation exists without exception. Violations of the registration obligation can be penalized with fines of up to 150,000 euros, in severe cases even up to one million euros or twice the economic advantage, and are therefore a central compliance factor. The transparent ownership structure also facilitates KYC checks, strengthens the trust of business partners and investors, and contributes to the effective fight against money laundering, terrorism financing, and tax evasion.