Did you know that ALL businesses, including small businesses*, MUST file their Beneficial Ownership Information (‘BOI’) statement, including their BOI ID number, with the Federal government no later than January 13, 2025? (There are very few BOI exemptions, which I include below.) If you are wondering just what the heck is a Beneficial Ownership Information statement, and why do you have to file one, and where do you get your BOI ID number, this is the place for you. SOME entities are exempt, but the odds are VERY good that your entity is not one of them (list of company types exempt from the BOI requirements is at the end of this article).
[*NOTE: The exception is sole proprietorships that meet the following criteria: the sole proprietorship was NOT created in the United States by filing a document with a secretary of state or similar office EXCEPT that filing a document with a government agency ONLY to obtain an IRS employer identification number, or a fictitious business name, or a professional or occupational license does not does cause the sole proprietorship to come under the BOI requirements.”]
If it seems as if the BOI reporting requirement just arrived out of left field, well that’s because basically it has. The Beneficial Ownership Information reporting requirement is contained within the Corporate Transparency Act, which was passed and enacted in 2021. It has been tied up in the courts ever since, the National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) being one entity involved in trying to overturn the entire Corporate Transparency Act as being, they believe, unconstitutional overreach on the part of the Federal government.
For their part, the Feds say that this is necessary to help the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), part of the Department of Treasury, ferret out financial crimes such as money laundering.
Basically the Beneficial Ownership Information reporting is designed to have businesses reveal who is really behind each business entity, and who is really benefitting financially from the financial transactions that are processed by that business.
And the reason that it feels as if it came out of left field is because there wasn’t a whole lot of chatter about it, especially in the general media, while it’s been tied up in the courts. However, three days ago (this is being written on December 26, 2025), and just two days before Christmas, the Court of Appeals released a decision saying that the BOI requirements could move forward – and as those requirements included a January filing deadline, suddenly there has been a flurry of activity as businesses suddenly are scrambling to comply with a requirement and deadline that they didn’t even know existed until just now.
How to Get Your Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) ID Number
You’ll need a BOI ID number in order to file your report. To get your BOI ID, you’ll need to create an account at the Department of Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN). Of course once arriving at that site, you first will need to sign in to (or create an account with) Login.gov, which our Federal government explains is “The public’s one account for government”; in other words one account to access all government agencies, including your IRS account, your Medicare account, etc.. What could possibly go wrong?
Once you create your account, you’ll be able to get your BOI ID number, which you will need to fill out the online Beneficial Ownership Information form, which you can then submit online. It’s actually pretty easy, although that doesn’t take away from the fact that it’s also annoying and just one more hoop through which the Federal government has millions of people and businesses jump in order to catch a few bad guys (does that ever really work?)
Now, of course there are already online ‘services’ cropping up that offer to help you file your BOI report. For example, an organization calling itself BOIR.org. Personally, I would stay far away from any of these. For one thing, for the vast majority of businesses and business owners, it’s very simple to fill out the form on the actual, legitimate, Department of Treasury FinCEN site. For another thing, using BOIR.org as an example, I noted a spelling error on their site, which is often a dead giveaway for a scam site, and as you have to reveal your social security number you really don’t want some scam site getting ahold of that! And even if it’s not a scam, it’s an appalling lack of attention to a site asking you to trust it with very sensitive information.
How and Where to File your Beneficial Ownership Information Report
To file your BOI report, go here.
What is the Deadline for Filing Your BOI Report?
The deadline for filing your BOI, which was originally January 1, 2025, has now been extended to January 13, 2025.
What Companies, Organizations, and Entities Qualify for the BOI Exemption and so are Exempt from the BOI Reporting Requirements?
There are BOI exemptions available for 23 types of companies and entities, here they are, taken directly from the FinCEN.gov website:
“Are some companies exempt from the reporting requirement?
Yes, 23 types of entities are exempt from the beneficial ownership information reporting requirements. These entities include publicly traded companies meeting specified requirements, many nonprofits, and certain large operating companies.
The following table summarizes the 23 exemptions:
No. Exemption Short Title
1 Securities reporting issuer
2 Governmental authority
3 Bank
4 Credit union
5 Depository institution holding company
6 Money services business
7 Broker or dealer in securities
8 Securities exchange or clearing agency
9 Other Exchange Act registered entity
10 Investment company or investment adviser
11 Venture capital fund adviser
12 Insurance company
13 State-licensed insurance producer
14 Commodity Exchange Act registered entity
15 Accounting firm
16 Public utility
17 Financial market utility
18 Pooled investment vehicle
19 Tax-exempt entity
20 Entity assisting a tax-exempt entity
21 Large operating company
22 Subsidiary of certain exempt entities
23 Inactive entity”
