Ultimate Beneficial Ownership (“UBO”)

Ultimate Beneficial Ownership (UBO) Services In Dubai UAE

Ultimate Beneficial Ownership (“UBO”)

Though companies are progressively expected to understand who they are doing business with to combat fraud, identifying the UBO is part of Anti Money Laundering (AML) and Know Your Customer (KYC) processes. Ultimate Beneficial Ownership screening is mandatory for specific industries such as banks, solicitors, estate agents, accountants, etc. under the Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing (Prevention) Act.

An ‎“Ultimate ‎Beneficial ‎Owner”‎ is a natural person (other than a person acting solely in the capacity of a professional adviser or professional manager) who:

In relation to a Company, holds or controls (directly or through a chain of ownership or control or any other indirect means.
25% or more shares or other Ownership Interests in the company
Voting rights in the company
The right to appoint or remove the majority of the Directors of the company
In relation to a Partnership, has the legal right to exercise, or actually exercises, significant control or influence over the activities of the Partnership
In relation to a Foundation, has the legal right to exercise, or actually exercises, significant control or influence over the activities of the Governing Body, person, or other arrangement administering the property or carrying out the objects of the Foundation.

Ultimate Beneficial Ownership (“UBO”) in UAE

UAE Federal Law 20 of 2018 on Anti Money Laundering and Countering the Financing of Terrorism (the “AML Law”) and Cabinet Decision 10 of 2019 issued under the AML Law require business licensing agencies in the UAE to identify the ultimate individual beneficial Owner(s) of businesses licensed by them.

What does your Company need to do?

Your organization needs to follow procedures and processes to collect information about all individuals with significant ownership or control at the time of onboarding or new business relationship. UBO is part of the KYC process, where you need to collect, store, update, and file the information correctly and completely with the Beneficial Ownership Register or other Register in your jurisdiction.

Implement Customer Due Diligence that includes ‘beneficial ownership information.
Implement an AML/CFT program with Ultimate Beneficial Ownership Screening.
Maintain a Register with ownership information.
Enhance due diligence based on risk assessment & country risks
Transactions of UBOs to be monitored and reported for suspicious transactions or behavior

The beneficial ownership information to be collected from individuals is:

Name (and title for the controlling individual(s)
Gender of the person
Date of birth
Nationality
Passport number
Residence address
Mobile number
Emirates ID

For a business entity, the following information is collected:

Name of business,
Address,
Type of business,
Registration number,
Country of operation,
Structure of directors and ownership, shareholding, etc.

4 Steps of UBO Screening

Identify

Determining and checking the UBO identity are key elements of screening. This check can be automated where reliable data exists or maybe risk-based. This means you may make a personal estimate of the risk of a business relationship or transaction being part of money laundering or terrorism financing systems.

Check

Once you have detected the identity, you should screen the UBO to estimate the risk. For example, is the UBO in PEP lists, inspection lists, or sanction lists, or does it have negative publicity?

Risk Estimate

Use objective indicators to rank your relationships into various risk categories, ranging from low to high. The nature and scale of the screening may be adjusted to the risk assessment. The lower the risk, the less effort you need to make to reduce this risk.

Relate and Record

It is important to assess your relationships in a uniform and efficient way and file the ensuing information consistently.

How ABACCO Can Help

ABACCO offers a range of products that will help your business adhere to regulatory compliance and verify the Ultimate Beneficial Owner of any company.

Our Risk and Compliance team streamlines the process of identifying the UBO in UAE, alongside running PEP & Sanction checks, AML checks and offering news reports regarding the company in question.

Ultimate Beneficial Ownership (“UBO”)

Keep yourself updated regarding the UBO you are working with. Our team of experts is always here to protect you from any future risk. Maintain your corporation’s reputation and avail the assistance of our experts and technology to scan the UBO of your counter company to decide whether to make a deal with them or not.

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Frequently Asked Questions

What services are offered by ABACCO auditing of accounts?

ABACCO is a full-service independent Audit, Accounting and Management Consultancy firm, providing the best in class services for Accounting and Bookkeeping, VAT/ Tax Consultancy, Audit and Assurance, Risk and Compliance advisory, CFO Services, Odoo ERP solutions, HR and Outsourcing services along with effective Business Consulting, Company Incorporation and Advisory services.

How can I get in touch ABACCO experts?

You can fill out the given callback forms available on each of the services pages on our website services , if you are interested in a specific service. You may also get in touch with our team through the contact details given on the website, and you will receive a callback or connection with a ABACCO representative, ready to fulfill your business needs.

You can also email us at info@abacco.ae or call us at +971 52 322 6455

Is ABACCO an approved auditor in Dubai free zones?

ABACCO is the approved auditor in almost all of the free zones in Dubai and can provide services to all businesses operating within these zone:

DMCC
JAFZA
DAFZA
RAKEZ
Hamriyah
SAIF Zone