The filing requirements under the Corporate Transparency Act (“CTA”) have been temporarily suspended again. In yet another reversal, the Fifth Circuit of the United States Court of Appeals in an order filed December 26, 2024 vacated its December 23 decision to stay a lower court’s nationwide preliminary injunction prohibiting enforcement of the CTA and associated regulations by the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (“FinCen”).
We most recently alerted you that the filing requirement for the CTA had been reinstated with a new deadline of January 13, 2025. This recent Court order supersedes those recommendations in our recent alert and temporarily halts enforcement of the CTA and its beneficial ownership reporting requirements.
The scope of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Texas’s injunction which is now back in effect precludes enforcement of any of the filing requirements of the CTA for companies formed before or after January 1, 2024. For example, the 90-day filing deadline for companies formed in 2024 is stayed, pending further action of the Court.
We are not able to predict the outcome of these proceedings, however any further decision may significantly affect your obligation to file with FinCen and we will keep you informed of any future developments.
As things stand today, companies do not currently need to file reports under the CTA, but we recommend that companies continue to gather requisite information for filing and be prepared to file in anticipation of a potential stay or modification of the Court’s injunction.
