With the entry into force on 8 March 2024 of the New Regulation on the Registration of Legal Entities, recently approved by Decree-Law no. 1/2024, of 8 March (the "CREL Regulation"), all companies, consortia, representations of national or foreign entities must, within 90 days from 8 March 2024, register their respective Beneficial Owners ("BO") with the Legal Entities Registry ("CREL").

The BO registration procedure is identified in Articles 14 and 15 of the CREL Regulation, which must be strictly followed in the registration process at CREL.

Failure to register a BO and failure to comply with the rules contained in the CREL Regulation may result in the imposition of sanctions, such as fines, without prejudice to criminal prosecution under the terms of the applicable legislation.

The information relating to the BO will be available, either remotely or in person, for consultation by the supervisory authorities, the Attorney General's Office, the Financial Information Office, the Tax Authority and others provided for by law. In addition, this information can be accessed by interested third parties, in person or remotely, through submitting an application.

With this innovation, we understand that the CREL Regulation has been revised as part of the legal reform being implemented in the Mozambican legal framework, with the aim of conforming and updating the provisions of the previous regulation to the Legal Regime on Anti-Money Laundering and Financing of Terrorism and Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction and the Commercial Code.

Should you require any assistance with registering your BO, please do not hesitate to contact us.