“The aim of the amendment is to achieve a better balance between transparency, the fight against money laundering, and the protection of individuals’ privacy. Beneficial ownership data must be accessible to those who need it for the performance of their duties or for anti-money laundering purposes, but it should not be unjustifiably public for everyone,” said Evelyn Liivamägi, Deputy Secretary General of the Ministry of Finance.
The changes stem from the European Union’s new anti-money laundering framework and the case law of the European Court of Justice, according to which unrestricted public access to beneficial ownership data is not justified.
Beneficial ownership data helps to identify who actually controls a company. This data is important for combating money laundering and terrorist financing, fulfilling customer due diligence obligations, and for supervision. Currently, anyone can view beneficial ownership data in the e-Business Register. However, the new European Union framework provides that access will be based on specific grounds.
Under the new regime, beneficial ownership data may be used by competent authorities in the performance of their statutory duties, by obliged entities for customer due diligence and compliance purposes, and by persons who can demonstrate a legitimate interest in accessing specific data. These users will continue to have free access to the data through the e-Business Register portal.
The changes to the use of the register will enter into force on 10 July 2026. Unauthenticated users will no longer be able to view beneficial ownership data. If a person does not have access rights to the beneficial ownership register, they may submit a request and justify why they need access to the data.
Before the changes enter into force, the Ministry of Finance will provide more detailed guidance on the implementation of the new regime. For technical questions, users can contact the e-Business Register helpdesk. For substantive questions, please contact the Ministry of Finance at [email protected] .
