In a change of course, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit vacated (or rescinded) its December 23, 2024 ruling that effectively reinstated the Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) reporting requirements of the Corporate Transparency Act (CTA).
As a result, businesses are NOT required to file BOI reports with FinCEN until the constitutionality of the BOI reporting requirements of the CTA is further litigated.
Earlier in December, the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Texas issued a nationwide preliminary injunction halting the enforcement of the BOI reporting requirements mandated by the CTA. (Texas Top Cop Shop v. Garland (December 3, 2024) U.S. Dist. Ct., Eastern Dist. Of Texas, Case No. 4:24-CV-478). On December 23, 2024, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit stayed that preliminary injunction, thereby reinstating the BOI reporting requirement. However, that earlier Fifth Circuit ruling now has been vacated, which means the original nationwide injunction is once again in effect.
FinCEN released a statement today, noting that “In light of a recent federal court order, reporting companies are not currently required to file beneficial ownership information with FinCEN and are not subject to liability if they fail to do so while the order remains in force. However, reporting companies may continue to voluntarily submit beneficial ownership information reports.” [Emphasis added]
We will continue to provide additional updates as information becomes available.