Swiss transparency register from October 2026: what SA and Sàrl companies need to prepare

As of October 1, 2026, the majority of corporations, limited liability companies, and cooperatives will need to identify, verify, document, and report the identities of the individuals who control them. Here’s what to prepare and by when.

A new obligation for the majority of Swiss companies

Starting October 1, 2026, Switzerland will implement a federal register of economic beneficiaries, called TranspaReg. It will be maintained by the Federal Office of Justice. Unlike the commercial register, it will not be freely accessible to the public.

The system relies on self-declaration. Each affected company will need to determine who actually controls it, verify and document the information collected, and then announce it to the register. It will then need to ensure that this data remains accurate and up to date.

This particularly concerns corporations, limited liability companies, and cooperatives. Sole proprietorships, partnerships, limited partnerships, foundations, and associations are generally not subject to this. There are also exemptions, particularly for certain listed companies, pension institutions, or entities controlled by public authorities.

Who is the economic beneficiary?

The beneficial owner is always a natural person. This is the person who ultimately controls the company, directly or indirectly.

• Control by participation: final holding of at least 25% of the capital or voting rights.
• Control in another way: for example, through a shareholders' agreement, a veto right, a nomination right, or another arrangement that allows influencing essential decisions.
• Indirect control: the company must trace the chain of participations up to the natural persons who exercise ultimate control.

When no one meets these criteria, the highest-ranking member of the governing body must be announced as a fallback. This fallback rule does not exempt the company from seriously seeking indirect or contractual control.

What information will need to be gathered?

For each beneficial owner, the company must have the name, first name, date of birth, nationalities, as well as the municipality, postal code, and state of residence. It must also determine the nature of the control: direct or indirect, exercised alone or in concert, by participation or in another way.

In complex structures, information on intermediate entities, trusts, fiduciary relationships, or the chain of control may be necessary. Simply reusing an old bank form will not always suffice: the concept of beneficial owner in the register follows its own rules.

What deadlines for already existing companies?

Deadlines begin to run on October 1, 2026. However, the first amendment to the registration in the commercial register after this date may advance the deadline: the filing must then, in principle, be made within the month following this amendment.

The trap of the next change in the commercial register

A company planning a change of registered office, company name, purpose, manager, or director after October 1, 2026, should simultaneously prepare its TranspaReg file. The first amendment to the commercial register can trigger a one-month deadline, even when the company would normally have benefited from a longer transitional period.

This rule deserves special attention for family LLCs that think they can wait two years because their partners are already listed in the commercial register. The extended deadline is not an invitation to forget the file at the bottom of a drawer: an operation in the commercial register can quite abruptly bring it back to the desk.

How to prepare your company right now?

1. Update the share register or the partners' register.
2. Check the percentages of capital and voting rights, including indirect holdings.
3. Examine the shareholder agreements, veto rights, appointment rights, and fiduciary relationships.
4. Identify each individual ultimately exercising control and gather the necessary documentation.
5. Create or verify AGOV and EasyGov access; their validation may take several days.
6. Designate the person responsible for the filing and organize the future reporting of changes.

Can the announcement be delegated to a fiduciary?

Yes. A person can be authorized to make filings for multiple companies on EasyGov. However, the company remains responsible for the quality of the information provided and must transmit the necessary facts and documentation to the agent.

For simple structures, the filing should be relatively standardized. In the presence of a holding company, foreign shareholders, a shareholder agreement, a trust, or a fiduciary holding, a prior analysis is recommended.