The Dutch UBO register contains certain personal details of ultimate beneficial owners (UBOs) of Dutch legal entities or arrangements. The (amended) fourth EU Anti-Money Laundering Directive (the AML Directive) includes the implementation of an UBO register for all EU member states.

On November 22, 2022, the European Court of Justice rendered a judgement on the compatibility of public access to the UBO register with the fundamental right to protection of private life and personal data. This judgement has suspended public access to the UBO register. In view thereof, the Dutch Chamber of Commerce (which manages the UBO register) no longer provides extracts from the UBO register until further notice.

It is noted that the judgement does not alter the obligation to timely register accurate information with the Dutch UBO register.

On January 20, 2023, the Dutch Minister of Finance informed the House of Representatives (Tweede Kamer der Staten-Generaal) on the consequences of the judgement for Dutch legislation. Current Dutch legislation prescribes that UBO information such as name, month, year of birth, nationality and country of residence of the UBO as well as the nature and extent of the beneficial interest held should be accessible to anyone. The Dutch Minister of Finance considers this no longer valid and access to the UBO register should therefore be limited to certain Dutch government authorities, institutions that have an obligation to verify UBOs such as banks and civil law notaries, as well as individuals and organizations that can demonstrate a legitimate interest. Consequently, the Dutch legislation that allows public access to UBO information for anyone has to be amended and will result in the end of public access to the UBO register. The Dutch Minister of Finance will therefore commission a draft bill soon.

Want to know more about the Dutch UBO register or the consequences of the judgement? Reach out to Ard Faaij from our NYC team.