UK Overseas Territories Face Criticism Over Corporate Transparency Registers

British overseas territories and crown dependencies are facing criticism for implementing corporate transparency registers that campaigners claim are intentionally designed to be obstructive. The Government of the United Kingdom led a seven-year campaign to force these jurisdictions to introduce registers to combat tax avoidance and money laundering, but critics argue the resulting systems are ineffective.

Transparency International and Open Ownership report that high fees, complex application processes, and broad exemptions for protection from disclosure hinder access to beneficial ownership information. In the Cayman Islands, applicants must pay fees via international wire transfer and prove a legitimate interest. In the British Virgin Islands, the regime may notify the subjects of inquiries about who is requesting their data. Transparency International specifically reported a lack of response to inquiries regarding the property holdings of a sanctioned Russian oligarch.

Government anti-corruption champion Margaret Hodge described the registries as a mockery of their purpose and suggested Westminster could force crown dependencies to improve transparency. In response, spokespeople for the Cayman Islands and British Virgin Islands defended their regimes as aligned with international standards. They denied having problems with illicit finance, asserting that criminal and tax authorities already possess full access to the necessary data.