Turks & Caicos: FSC: Over 1000 companies unregistered, first deadline two weeks away

#Providenciales, October 16, 2018 – Turks and Caicos – Fifteen percent of all ordinary business owners in Turks and Caicos have yet to comply with the new Companies Ordinance and the first of three deadlines – October 31^st – looms.

Nearly 16,000 registered companies in the TCI and the good news is that 85 percent of them are in line with the new law which is yet another benchmark regime for global financial compliance.  Still it leaves a huge body of work undone.

Karlene Ferrier, Registrar of Companies at the Financial Services Commission explained that in a best case scenario the hundreds of applications can be processed online; taking just one hour if the form is correctly completed.

“Every company must appoint a registered agent.   Also in response to our international requirements is the establishment of a Beneficial Registered Ownership of Companies.” –

KYC or Know Your Customer policies are relentlessly guiding the ever changing standards.  The FSCs Company Registry Department on Thursday expressed concern that about one thousand companies remain unregistered under the new law which took effect on February 1 2018.

Marc Rawlins, FSC Legal and Enforcement Consultant said the TCI got a reprieve after missing the original deadline due to the distraction and damages of the hurricanes in 2017.  Now, the promise to the Foreign Office of the UK is to be compliant with the register ready by February next year.

“We were able to negotiate an extended timeline.”

If companies miss the October and December and January deadlines which see costs increase as time passes; then they will be deleted from the Companies Register altogether making it illegal to do business in the Turks and Caicos and creating an even more expensive path toward being reinstated.

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