The European Union (Anti-Money Laundering: Beneficial Ownership of Corporate Entities) Regulations 2026 (2026 Regulations) came into force on 4 August 2026.

The 2026 Regulations, which implement parts of the sixth Anti-Money Laundering Directive, introduce a new access regime that allows any person with a legitimate interest in preventing and combating money laundering and terrorist financing (legitimate interest) to apply to the Registrar of Beneficial Ownership (Registrar) for an access certificate. A legitimate interest access certificate (access certificate) will allow the holder to inspect certain beneficial ownership information relating to a relevant company for the duration of the certificate.

Certain categories of people, connected with the prevention or combating of money laundering or terrorist financing, are “deemed to have a legitimate interest”. These include, for example, journalists, media organisations, and civil society organisations involved in the prevention and combating of money laundering and terrorist financing, as well as parties contemplating transactions with the entity.

Access certificates will be valid for three years from the date of issue or until revoked, whichever comes first.

A person who has been granted an access certificate can access the following information about the beneficial owner(s): name; month and year of birth; country of residence; nationality; and a statement of the nature and extent of the beneficial interest held.

Commencing on 10 November, a new statutory response timeframe requires the Registrar to respond to a submission for an access certificate within 12 working days. This can be extended by 12 working days if there is a sudden high volume of requests, and by a further 12 working days if volumes remain high, up to a maximum of 43 working days. Once a certificate has been issued, subsequent inspection requests must be responded to within 7 working days.

When considering a submission for an access certificate, the Registrar will require certain information, documents and data as part of the submission process. If satisfied that the applicant has a legitimate interest, the Registrar will grant an access certificate for 3 years or until revoked, whichever comes first. If the Registrar is not satisfied that the applicant has a legitimate interest, the access certificate will be refused.

A person may, not later than 10 working days after the Registrar has provided the person with a statement of its decision, appeal to the District Court against a refusal to issue or revoke an access certificate.

Any person to whom a certificate is issued is required to notify the Registrar of any changes that may trigger the cessation of a valid legitimate interest.

The 2026 Regulations facilitate greater transparency of the ownership of Irish corporate entities and help to redress the balance between the need for greater transparency and easier access to beneficial ownership information for legitimate purposes, on the one hand, and the need to protect a person’s privacy and personal data, on the other.

With these increased access rights, there will be greater scrutiny of beneficial ownership information. Businesses should review their beneficial ownership information and ensure that the information filed with the Central Register of Beneficial Ownership is accurate and up to date.

For more information about the 2026 Regulations and the changes they made to the beneficial ownership information access regime in Ireland, click on our briefing here or on the image below.

For a link to the 2026 Regulations, click here.