November 2025 – Austria recently
introduced further amendments to the Beneficial Owner Register Act
(WiEReG – BORA), which are intended to reduce
structural opacity in beneficial ownership structures. In practice,
the most relevant measures concern extended reporting obligations
for nominee agreements (trust relationships).
New key definitions
The changes relating to nominee agreements came into force on 1
October 2025. The new Section 2a of the BORA introduces three key
terms: nominee, nominator, and nominee director, whereas:
- a "nominee" is a natural person,
legal entity, or group of the foregoing who is instructed by the
nominator to act as an owner or in a trustee function for the
nominator;
