Who is a beneficial owner under UAE AML law?
A beneficial owner, or real beneficiary, is the natural person who ultimately owns or controls a legal person. Under the UAE real beneficiary regime, this is the natural person who owns or controls, directly or indirectly, twenty-five per cent or more of the capital of the legal person, or who holds twenty-five per cent or more of the voting rights, or who otherwise exercises ultimate effective control over the entity.
Where no natural person can be identified through ownership or control, the person who holds the position of senior management is treated as the beneficial owner. Ownership held through layers of companies does not remove the obligation, since the test looks through the structure to the natural person at the top.
Legal Reference (UAE):
ยท Cabinet Resolution No. 109 of 2023 (Real Beneficiary Procedures), Article 5 - sets the twenty-five per cent ownership or voting test and the ultimate control test for identifying the real beneficiary.
For more details, consult the full text of Cabinet Resolution No. 109 of 2023 or seek guidance from your AML compliance officer.