We’d be lying if we claimed that the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN) doesn’t provide any type of technology to help you with beneficial ownership information (BOI) reporting. It does – you have to file your report using the BOI E-Filing system FinCEN set up for that very purpose.
But the process is so laborious.
You have to get your FinCEN ID to even start a filing and, even when you have it, you still have to collect and enter data manually. That goes for updates as well as fresh reports. BOI E-Filing is a technological benefit, for sure, but it’s also one riddled with inefficiencies and lacking any sort of streamlining through automation. You need a better BOI reporting technology solution that saves time and reduces the potential for costly errors that could put you in line for FinCEN penalties.
The Benefits of Technology-Driven Solutions
Why opt for BOI reporting technology over the on-site tools that FinCEN offers for BOI reporting? We split the answer into three parts, each demonstrating what the right technological solution offers when you’re dealing with beneficial ownership challenges.
Enhanced Efficiency
FinCEN has created a process with BOI reporting. You create an account, manually fill out beneficial owner details, and submit your report via the FinCEN portal. That process is fine. However, it’s one you’ll follow time and time again during the course of running your business. Every new beneficial owner you add forces an update of your BOI report. An owner who changes their status – such as one who invests to receive a higher percentage ownership of the business – also forces a change. Inefficiency creeps into FinCEN’s BOI reporting process whenever these types of changes occur.
The right BOI reporting technology enhances efficiency by streamlining the standard process. Automation is a major factor in driving this efficiency. Your technological solution should be capable of remembering the data you’ve previously inputted into your BOI reports. That memory allows you to make tweaks and change information easily without starting from scratch each time. The right solution can even take basic information, such as a new address for an existing beneficial owner, and automatically ensure that new information is reflected throughout the report.
Streamlining can also come in the form of automated reminders designed to ensure you update your BOI reports per compliance changes. Perhaps most importantly, a BOI reporting technology should stop you from having to manually complete a full report every time you need to make a minor change. It’s all about streamlining – technology makes BOI reporting simpler than FinCEN’s standard process.
Improved Data Accuracy
FinCEN’s goal with BOI reporting is simple – create a transparent system through which they can see the full ownership structure of a business. That transparency should weed out criminals who use legitimate business entities to launder and otherwise appropriate illicit funds. So, it stands to reason that penalties for inaccurate BOI reports will be heavy. The civil fines that start at $500 – and rise per inflation every year – are just the beginning. You can also be locked up for two years and face a $10,000 criminal fine if you submit (and fail to alter) inaccurate BOI reports.
We tell you this to impress upon you the vitality of ensuring the information you share in your BOI reports is accurate. What may seem like a simple mistake to you – such as a misspelled address – is grounds for punishment to FinCEN.
So, we come to BOI reporting technology and its role in improving data accuracy. Collaborative access to reports involving every beneficial owner in your business helps here. Each owner submitting and checking over the information before submission minimizes the risk of errors. The previously mentioned automation also helps here, particularly regarding ensuring compliance. FinCEN maintains the right to change how it handles BOI reports. Your BOI reporting technology should be capable of tracking those compliance changes and notifying you when they occur.
Centralized Data Management
We mentioned the concept of collaborative BOI reporting above. A BOI reporting technology that allows all beneficial owners access to an in-progress report minimizes the possibility of costly mistakes occurring.
But your technology can offer so much more than this collaborative feature. For instance, some BOI technologies are developed as much for companies that handle filing requirements for other businesses as they are for companies to handle the filing themselves. That’s where centralized data management comes into play. The right tech solution should offer a central data storage system that allows you to quickly navigate through different BOI reports in a single location.
Imagine you have a business that handles BOI reporting for other companies. Having those reports spread out across a complicated filing system – as is very possible when using manual filing methods – adds time to the reporting process and can cost additional money for you and your clients. Centralized storage in a BOI reporting technology lets you find the report on which you need to work nearly instantaneously. A dashboard that incorporates your clients only adds to the functionality of such a solution.
Introducing BOI Agent: A Technology Solution for Beneficial Ownership Reporting
So far, we’ve talked about the idea of BOI reporting technology in nebulous terms. You know what this type of technology should offer, but you don’t yet know who’s providing the type of technology you need. BOI Agent is your solution.
Made by the same people who handle business-related filings for major companies like AENZA and Santander, BOI Agent software delivers a novel solution to the BOI reporting challenge. It’s secure and compliant. It’s also your company’s best choice for BOI reporting technology that allows you to handle filings for multiple clients.
What Is BOI Agent?
BOI Agent is a cloud-based solution that integrates into your company’s existing workflow. You can tailor it to your specific needs (with help from the provided API access) and benefit from a cloud-based reporting solution. The product also supports white labeling. You can brand your BOI Agent solution so it aligns with the branding you’ve implemented for your other software. Plus, BOI Agent offers API access – ideal for tweaking the work as you need it for your business.
You also receive access to a wealth of features with BOI Agent, including the following:
Free Platform Upgrades
Upgrades come in two categories with BOI Agent – compliance-related and software-related.
On the compliance side, the company’s in-house engineering team adjusts your software whenever FinCEN alters the BOI filing requirements. These tweaks ensure your BOI reports are always up-to-date with the latest requirements. As for software upgrades, those are made based on user feedback. BOI Agent constantly implements new features – such as automated reminders and team permissions – to enhance your experience.
Strong Security Measures
It’s here that BOI Agent’s SOC-2 certification comes to the fore. SOC-2 (Systems and Organization Controls 2) is a security framework that defines and implements requirements for how a piece of software manages and stores customer data. What does that mean for you? Your business can feel safe in the knowledge that BOI Agent is a certified technology supplier that stores and uses the data you provide safely.
SOC-2 certification offers a minimum security standard. But “minimum” isn’t enough for BOI Agent. The company’s engineers also implement proprietary measures – building on the SOC-2 standards – to safeguard your information.
Specialized Support
All of the information coming out of FinCEN about beneficial ownership reporting is a lot to wrap your head around. One visit to the FinCEN site might reveal that. Pages upon pages of questions and answers obfuscate what should be a simple process, leaving you questioning what you’re supposed to do.
BOI Agent solves that not just by streamlining the process with its BOI reporting technology, but by offering you access to a specialized support team. That team understands CTA regulations and stays up-to-date on compliance changes. Available via phone, email, or chat, it serves as your company’s support agent as you ensure your clients remain BOI-compliant.
How Does BOI Agent Work?
BOI Agent does offer a filing solution for individuals, priced at $149 per filing with no hidden charges. However, BOI agent is far more focused on working alongside businesses that provide BOI filing services to their clients.
Primarily, the BOI reporting technology works via a partnership with businesses that provide business filing services to their clients. You license the solution. Your clients work through BOI Agent – with your oversight – to file their beneficial ownership reports. The result is a non-competitive partnership that ensures your clients can’t and won’t bypass your firm when dealing with beneficial ownership reporting.
The Impact of BOI Agent on Beneficial Ownership Reporting
You have a taste of what BOI agent offers to your business. But what about impact? How does this BOI reporting technology transform the way you work with your clients?
Increased Efficiency
We touched on increased efficiency as a key benefit of BOI reporting technology earlier. BOI Agent boosts efficiency by offering you a centralized solution through which you can handle multiple clients’ BOI reporting needs.
For instance, you receive access to the BOI Agent API when you subscribe to the platform. That access allows you to integrate BOI Agent into your existing software to streamline your reporting processes. You’ll also have a dashboard – brandable with your company’s logo – through which you can add new clients and access the reports created for existing customers.
Improved Data Accuracy
Error minimization is key for BOI reporting because of the penalties we mentioned earlier. FinCEN can and will punish a business if its beneficial ownership information doesn’t align with the reality of the company’s ownership structure.
BOI Agent solves this with several measures designed to prevent errors. Client sign-offs, with Internet Protocol capture technology, ensure your client approves every report you create before it’s sent to FinCEN. That feature also offers liability protection to your business. You can’t submit a report without the client signing off, ensuring that the right pairs of eyes check the information being submitted.
Other data accuracy measures in BOI Agent include AI-powered tools and eFiling checks to ensure proper formatting for filing. This powerful combination of tools allows you to make real-time updates to reports as needed.
Enhanced Compliance
You don’t have to rely solely on BOI Agent’s specialized support team for queries about CTA regulations and compliance. Ongoing support delivered directly through your new BOI reporting technology helps to keep you informed.
Automated reminders alert you to regulatory changes that may require changes to your BOI reports. BOI Agent’s engineers also work year-round to ensure the software’s automated filing features comply with the FinCEN eFiling system.
Trust BOI Agent as Your BOI Reporting Technology Provider
Speed, compliance, and greater accuracy – are the three key benefits of using the BOI Agent reporting technology solution. Add the ability to manage multiple client accounts from a single dashboard and you get a powerful solution you can integrate into your current workflow. Would you like to learn more? Explore BOI Agent today – book your demo and discover the all-in-one BOI reporting solution.
