As much as £1bn in fines are yet to be imposed on overseas firms that have failed to declare their ownership of UK properties.
Analysis by the BBC shows thousands of overseas companies with property in the UK have yet to declare their owners, despite the Economic Crime Act 2022 making it compulsory to do so.
Although the majority of companies have submitted their details, about 5,000 firms with property in England and Wales have not, more than three months after the 31 January deadline. The government suggests the figure is likely to be lower, as some companies may no longer exist and several hundred have already transferred their property.
But even if there were just 4,000 firms that are not complying with the law, the total value in fines would add up to £10m per day if the maximum daily financial penalty was imposed on every company that has not supplied its information.
Over the entire period since the deadline, more than 100 days, this would add up to around £1bn.
