The deadline to file beneficial ownership reports required by the Corporate Transparency Act has been extended to Jan. 13, 2025.

The law aims to mitigate money-laundering operations and requires small businesses, including dental practices, to report information on beneficial ownership to the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network. The original deadline was Jan. 1, 2025, but the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network extended it to Jan. 13, 2025.

For more information or to file a beneficial ownership report, visit  fincen.gov/boi. The ADA also created a  Frequently Asked Questions page to assist dentists with questions they may have. 

An appellate court on Dec. 23 reversed a nationwide injunction against the Corporate Transparency Act, meaning small businesses would still have to comply with the law and file their reports.

The ADA advocated for legislation to delay the filing deadline until Jan. 1, 2026. The Association signed onto a coalition letter urging the inclusion of the delay in the package to fund the government.

The Association also sent out a grassroots  Action Alert on Dec. 19, encouraging members to contact members of Congress to urge them to include dentists’ priorities in any government funding bill. The alert referred to an earlier bipartisan agreement that would fund many key oral health workforce programs and delay the Corporate Transparency compliance deadline by one year. Congress passed a funding bill on Dec. 21 that included some dental priorities, but it did not include a delay for the Corporate Transparency Act.

The act has met a number of legal challenges nationwide. In May 2024, a group of plaintiffs filed a lawsuit, Texas Top Cop Shop, Inc. v. Garland, alleging the Corporate Transparency Act oversteps Congress’ constitutional power to regulate interstate and foreign commerce and infringes on First Amendment protections.  On Dec. 3, U.S. District Judge Amos Mazzant ruled in favor of the plaintiffs, issuing a nationwide preliminary injunction blocking enforcement of the Corporate Transparency Act, and on Dec. 5, the U.S. Treasury Department appealed the order.  

Then, on Dec. 13, the U.S. Department of Justice filed an emergency motion with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit, resulting in the court issuing a stay of the nationwide preliminary injunction on Dec. 23. The plaintiffs in this case immediately filed an emergency petition Dec. 23 for a hearing by Jan. 6, 2025.

There are also pending cases in district courts in Alabama and Michigan regarding the scope and constitutionality of the Corporate Transparency Act.

ADA News will continue to update readers on the status of the Corporate Transparency Act.