Company Applicant Basics
Who is a company applicant ?
Only reporting companies created or registered on or after January 1, 2024, will need to report their company applicants.
A company that must report its company applicants will have only up to two individuals who could qualify as company applicants:
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The individual who directly files the document that creates or registers the company; and
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If more than one person is involved in the filing, the individual who is primarily responsible for directing or controlling the filing.
Is my accountant or lawyer considered a company applicant ?
An accountant or lawyer could be a company applicant, depending on their role in filing the document that creates or registers a reporting company. In many cases, company applicants may work for a business formation service or law firm.
An accountant or lawyer may be a company applicant if they directly filed the document that created or registered the reporting company. If more than one person is involved in the filing of the creation or registration document, an accountant or lawyer may be a company applicant if they are primarily responsible for directing or controlling the filing.
For example, an attorney at a law firm that offers business formation services may be primarily responsible for overseeing preparation and filing of a reporting company’s incorporation documents. A paralegal at the law firm may directly file the incorporation documents at the attorney’s request. Under those circumstances, the attorney and the paralegal are both company applicants for the reporting company.
