FinCEN Permanently Ends Beneficial Ownership Reporting for U.S. Companies

If you formed an LLC, corporation, or other registered entity in California and spent 2024 worrying about the Corporate Transparency Act filing, that obligation is now gone. On August 11, 2026, the Treasury Department's Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) issued a final rule that, in Treasury's words, "permanently removes the requirement for U.S. companies and U.S. persons to report beneficial ownership information to FinCEN under the Corporate Transparency Act." The final rule became effective August 14, 2026.

FinCEN's own guidance page now states the change plainly: U.S. companies are exempt from beneficial ownership information (BOI) reporting and are no longer required to file BOI reports; reporting companies do not need to report BOI for U.S. person beneficial owners or U.S. person company applicants; U.S. persons do not need to hand their identifying information to a reporting company; and a U.S. person who already obtained a FinCEN ID is not required to update or correct what they previously submitted. The rule makes permanent the exemptions FinCEN first put in place on an interim basis in March 2025.

There is also a privacy piece that matters to anyone who already filed. FinCEN announced it will delete previously reported information by U.S. persons from the beneficial ownership database, including data about company applicants, beneficial owners, and FinCEN ID holders that FinCEN reasonably believes belongs to a U.S. person, for example where the record is linked to a U.S. passport or U.S. driver's license.

Reporting has not disappeared for everyone. Under the final rule, entities formed under the law of a foreign country that have registered to do business in a U.S. state or tribal jurisdiction remain reporting companies and must still report beneficial ownership information for foreign individuals. Several exemption categories apply, so a foreign-formed entity operating here should check the qualifying criteria rather than assume the rule change covers it.

None of this touches your California obligations, and one of those just changed too. Every California LLC and corporation must still keep its Statement of Information current with the Secretary of State, and as of August 1, 2026, web User Access is required for Statement of Information filings: the option to file online is only visible to users who have established access to the entity's record. Conejo Valley owners who rely on a bookkeeper, an assistant, or an outside service to file should confirm that person has been granted access before the next filing comes due.

This article is general information about a change in federal and state filing requirements, not legal advice about your business. Rules like these have shifted more than once since 2024, so confirm current requirements before acting.

This article is general information, not legal advice, and does not create an attorney-client relationship. Estate and business law change often and depend on your specific situation. Speak with Donald W. Flaig before acting.