As a full member of the European Union (EU), Cyprus is required to comply with the applicable EU Directives and Regulations. As a result, Cyprus must implement the requirements for disclosing information on the beneficial ownership of legal entities, other legal arrangements and trusts in accordance with the requirements laid out in Directive (EU) 2018/843 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 30 May 2018 amending Directive (EU) 2015/849 on the prevention of the use of the financial system for the purposes of money laundering or terrorist financing, and amending Directives 2009/138/EC and 2013/36/EU (theFifth Money Laundering Directive).

A draft bill (incorporating the requirements of the Fifth Money Laundering Directive) is expected to be approved by the House of Representatives in due course. The draft bill indicates that the Department of Registrar of Companies and Official Receiver of the Republic of Cyprus will be the designated body responsible for collecting information on entities and other legal arrangements, while the Cyprus Securities and Exchange Commission (CySEC) will be the designated body responsible for collecting information on trusts.

Harneys has published a detailed article on the subject which can be found here.