OSCPA signs letter to Treasury & FinCEN expressing grave concerns with BOI implementation

As the reporting deadline for the Beneficial Ownership Information (BOI) approaches quickly, OSCPA has heard concerns from many members regarding the lack of clarity and guidance from the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) and the Jan. 1, 2025 deadline. Together with other state CPA societies and the AICPA, we have brought these concerns to the attention of the Department of the Treasury and FinCEN and have urged them to delay the filing deadline for initial filings by at least one year to no earlier than Jan. 1, 2026.  

Our most recent letter – signed by OSCPA and the AICPA – specifically cites additional confusion caused by the recent decision in the case of Texas Cop Shop, Inc., et al. v. Garland, et al., which imposed an injunction on BOI reporting nationwide. This case, along with several other court cases with conflicting outcomes and staggered delays for areas hit by natural disasters, has led to a widespread confusion of the reporting requirement and corresponding deadlines. As we noted in the letter, close to 80 percent of small businesses have yet to file their BOI information in the FinCEN database – this is a very concerning fact and is a clear indication of the lack of awareness among businesses across the country.  

The AICPA has established a resource page to help keep members informed and provide helpful resources, and the Ohio Society continues to work with our partners to advocate for a delay in BOI reporting, during which time FinCEN can continue to engage stakeholders and the small business community to ensure that the reporting requirements are known and understood. AICPA also offered this resource on what the latest changes mean for firms. In the meantime, we join the AICPA in advising members to continue getting clients ready to file their BOI report in the event the injunction is lifted. 

As AICPA staff continue to have conversations with FinCEN, they have received the following guidance: 

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 through FinCEN’s BOI E-Filing System at https://boiefiling.fincen.gov.   

On Friday, December 6, we informed companies with system-to-system Application Programming Interface (API) access to transmit beneficial ownership information reports (BOIRs) to FinCEN that all API access to submit such reports was being suspended.  We will be back in touch with these API providers with further guidance. 

Additional information is available at Beneficial Ownership Information Reporting | FinCEN.gov.