New laws will soon give Australians access to determining who really owns and controls a company, according to the federal government.
Currently, the law requires that companies maintain a register of their members or shareholders. But often the company can be controlled by what is known as a “beneficial owner”—a person who ultimately owns or controls it, even if legal ownership is held by another person or entity.
This can be through direct or indirect ownership of shares, voting rights above a certain threshold (often 25 percent), or by exercising effective control in another way, such as through a trust.
In future, there will be a public register of beneficial ownership information for unlisted companies.
Assistant Treasurer Andrew Leigh says the move will increase transparency and support stronger regulatory enforcement to tax and financial crime, which are often carried out via complex and opaque legal structures.
The register will be kept by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), which currently maintains the companies register. The government has committed $207 million of additional funding for ASIC over 2025/26 to 2026/27, part of which will be used on this project.
Detailed policy development will begin in early 2027, followed by public consultation.
An initial consultation on the initiative saw concerns raised by some submitters. The Institute of Public Accountants said it would “ strongly recommend that Treasury reconsider the burden the proposed changes would place on such companies and the impact it would have on the ability of people to not have their financial affairs open to public scrutiny.”
The Property Council of Australia was also concerned about public access to, and understanding of, the material, saying “greater information in the public domain, without context, can lead to misunderstandings or incorrect conclusions to be drawn from the information.
“For example, the company tax disclosures released by the [Australian Tax Office or ATO] each year can give the impression that taxes are not being paid by entities when there are legitimate reasons for this position (e.g. no taxable income, carry forward tax losses, not being a tax-paying entity).”
However, it received the support of the Australian Shareholders’ Association and the Australian Federal Police, among others.
Leigh said the current proposal responds to the feedback received during previous consultations.
“A centralised register is better for the purpose of law enforcement and civil society,” he said. “The government’s work on unlisted companies builds on our actions to improve the transparency of the true owners of listed companies. The government recently introduced legislation into Parliament to enhance the disclosure of the ownership and control of entities listed on Australian financial markets.
“By developing an open register of corporate ownership, the government will improve awareness of who ultimately owns, controls or receives profits from a company or legal vehicle operating in Australia.”
