Premier: UK concedes ‘legitimate interest access’ is best course

Premier Dr Natalio Wheatley says the BVI is on the right track, declaring that the United Kingdom has accepted that granting access to the territory’s beneficial ownership register on the basis of “legitimate interest” is the best way forward.

Dr Wheatley made the disclosure following a recent meeting in London with Overseas Territories Minister Stephen Doughty, during which he also discussed the progress on the Commission of Inquiry (COI) recommendations and the territory’s governance reforms.

“As it pertains to the legitimate interest access, I’m pleased that Minister Doughty, the FCDO, and even Baroness Hodge, the anti-corruption czar, has acknowledged that legitimate interest access is the way to go,” Dr Wheatley said.

He added, “As you know, previously, the United Kingdom wanted fully public open registers, but I was very pleased that even Baroness Hodge acknowledged that the direction of travel now is legitimate interest access, especially following the landmark decision that struck down the fifth anti-money laundering directive of the EU.”

The Premier explained that the BVI is preparing to launch its new VIRRGIN platform by early 2026, which will replace the current BOSS system and further enhance access to beneficial ownership data. “We want to ensure when persons access our register on a legitimate interest access basis that the information is there, that we’ve gone through our checks and balances, that we’ve done user testing, and that persons who qualify for exemptions have the opportunity to apply for those exemptions,” he said.

Since 2018, the BVI has operated the Beneficial Ownership Secure Search system (BOSS), which allows UK law enforcement to request information “almost immediately.” The Premier stressed that the Virgin Islands “will continue to fulfil our exchange of notes commitments and 28 tax information exchange agreements.”

The debate over public registers has been ongoing since the UK Parliament passed legislation in 2018 requiring Overseas Territories to establish them. However, following a 2022 European Court of Justice ruling that declared fully public registers invalid on privacy grounds, the BVI and other territories pushed for a legitimate interest model.

Dr Wheatley noted that the regime was shaped through consultation with the financial services industry and after careful legal scrutiny. “The regime that we have come up with and the policy that we have come up with were in strong consultation with our industry. It was after receiving sound legal advice. It was after we scrutinised very carefully our constitutional safeguards, like the right to privacy, also the right to have persons’ data protected and managed responsibly,” he explained.

The Premier added that while the UK had wanted the system to come online earlier, both sides had pledged to maintain ongoing dialogue to ensure its success.