Countries › Paraguay › Guide › 4. Entities and setup › Beneficial ownership, share registers and transfer reporting in Paraguay: Ley 6446 registry, 10 and 25 percent tests, 45 and 15 day deadlines, sanctions

Beneficial ownership, share registers and transfer reporting in Paraguay: Ley 6446 registry, 10 and 25 percent tests, 45 and 15 day deadlines, sanctions

Last verified: 2026-10-28 · Status: Stable

Every Paraguayan company, association, foundation, trust and investment fund must file its shareholders, managers, bylaws and beneficial owners with the Ministry of Economy and Finance registry within 45 business days of formation and report any change within 15 business days, as a sworn statement backed by documents kept for five years. A beneficial owner is any individual with 10 percent or more of the capital, more than 25 percent of the votes, power to appoint or remove management, or control through the bylaws or by managing or using the assets, traced through foreign holding chains; if none can be identified behind a foreign parent the local legal representative is presumed to be the beneficial owner. Non compliance blocks the RUC, freezes all operations with banks and other reporting entities and is fined 50 to 500 daily minimum wages or up to 30 percent of profits to be distributed; companies with shares must also report every share transfer within five plus five business days.

USD figures use PYG 5,847.90 per US dollar, the Banco Central del Paraguay reference quotation for 27 October 2026, the latest daily sheet published on the verification date. Amounts set in jornales or minimum wages use the daily minimum wage of PYG 117,077 and the monthly minimum wage of PYG 3,044,000 in force from 1 July 2026 (Resolución MTESS 670/2026). Conversions are for orientation only.

Key facts

Beneficial owner capital threshold	10 %Ley 6446/2019 art. 4 a), as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Beneficial owner voting control threshold	more than 25 %Ley 6446/2019 art. 4 b), as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Deadline for a new entity to file shareholders and beneficial owners	45 business daysLey 6446/2019 art. 3 and 5, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Deadline to report changes in the legal persons or beneficial owner registry	15 business daysLey 6446/2019 art. 7, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Retention of beneficial ownership records	5 yearsLey 6446/2019 art. 12, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Minimum beneficial ownership fine (50 daily minimum wages)	5853850 PYGLey 6446/2019 art. 9; Resolución MTESS 670/2026, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Maximum beneficial ownership fine (500 daily minimum wages)	58538500 PYGLey 6446/2019 art. 9; Resolución MTESS 670/2026, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Alternative beneficial ownership fine	up to 30 % of profits or dividends to be distributedLey 6446/2019 art. 9, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Public access to the beneficial owner registry	No; authorities and designated reporting entities only, with a public list of compliant entities every six months Ley 6446/2019 art. 10 and 11, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Deadline to report a share transfer (buyer to company, then company to the Ministry)	5 + 5 business daysLey 5895/2017 art. 5, as of 2026-10-28 · in force
Bearer shares allowed	No, shares must be registered Código Civil art. 1070 as amended by Ley 5895/2017 art. 11, as of 2026-10-28 · in force

The rule

1. Who must file and what. The obliged parties are legal persons such as companies, associations, foundations and the others governed by the Civil Code and special laws, and legal structures meaning trusts and investment funds. Through their legal representative they must give the Ministry the register or list of shareholders or of the authorities directing, controlling and managing them, their bylaws or other founding instruments and the last meeting electing authorities. Entities that can issue registered shares or titles report the holders' identity and percentage and class. Entities whose substantial capital belongs wholly or partly to foreign entities must also report and keep updated the ownership of the foreign shares or quotas and the powers granted in Paraguay, and if the foreign jurisdiction allows bearer shares, they must report all shares in every case. Entities formed after the law came into force file within 45 business days of formation.
Example: A new EAS owned by a US LLC files the LLC's ownership, the US managers' powers and the individuals behind it within 45 business days.Ley Nº 6446/2019 Que crea el registro administrativo de personas y estructuras jurídicas y el registro administrativo de beneficiarios finales, Art. 1, 2 and 3, 2019-11-29 official text · verified 2026-10-28

2. Who is a beneficial owner. One or more individuals who directly or indirectly hold substantial participation in, have final control of, or benefit from the entity, meeting at least one test: (a) shares or participations of 10 percent or more of total capital; (b) control of more than 25 percent of voting rights; (c) managers, administrators or people who frequently use or benefit from the entity's assets or on whose behalf it transacts; (d) the right to appoint or remove part of the management, direction or supervisory bodies; or (e) control under the bylaws or other instruments. For trusts, beneficial owners must be identified for the settlor, trustee and beneficiary.
Example: Two individuals each owning 50 percent of a Cayman parent that owns 100 percent of a Paraguayan EAS are each beneficial owners at 50 percent indirect.Ley Nº 6446/2019, Art. 4 and 5, 2019-11-29 official text · verified 2026-10-28

3. Filing content and chain. The filing states the percentages of substantial participation and who has none, who exercises final control, and the chain of ownership where ownership is indirect, backed by documents; it is a sworn statement. For each beneficial owner at least: full name, ID or passport, RUC or foreign tax ID, domicile, nationality and residence, profession, the condition that makes them a beneficial owner with the control chain or holding company and its size, and the date from which they qualify. If the beneficial owner behind a foreign holder cannot be identified, the local legal representative is presumed to be the beneficial owner.Ley Nº 6446/2019, Art. 5 and 6, 2019-11-29 official text · verified 2026-10-28

4. Changes, records and consequences. Any change in the registry data or beneficial owners must be reported within 15 business days of the event. Entities must keep for five years the documents, files and correspondence identifying beneficial owners. Until an overdue filing is made the entity cannot open accounts, issue debt or equity, make deposits or remittances or carry out any operation with banks, finance companies, exchange houses, brokers, cooperatives and other reporting entities, its RUC is blocked by the tax administration and other filings with the Ministry are suspended; once regularised the Ministry issues a compliance certificate. Fines are 50 to 500 daily minimum wages for unspecified activities or up to 30 percent of profits or dividends to be distributed, applying the Ley 125/91 sanction procedure, and also apply to refusal or false or incomplete information.
Cost to do it: Fine 50 to 500 daily minimum wages: PYG 5,853,850 to PYG 58,538,500, or up to 30 percent of profits to be distributed.
Example: With a planned dividend of PYG 1,000,000,000, the alternative cap of 30 percent is PYG 300,000,000. / Fixed range about US$1,001 to US$10,010; 30 percent of a US$171,002 dividend is US$51,300.Ley Nº 6446/2019, Art. 7, 8, 9 and 12, 2019-11-29 official text · verified 2026-10-28

5. Who runs the registry and who sees it. The law created the Dirección General de Personas y Estructuras Jurídicas y de Beneficiarios Finales in the Ministry, which applies this law and, replacing the Abogacía del Tesoro, the Ley 5895 transparency rules, keeps the registry, issues the opinion under Civil Code art. 1051 and takes over the Treasury's company registry functions. The registry is open to state bodies and AML authorities; the Ministry gives online access to the Central Bank, the tax administration, SEPRELAD and reporting entities designated by SEPRELAD, and publishes every six months the list of compliant entities.
Example: Banks consult the registry and the compliance list when onboarding a company.Ley Nº 6446/2019, Art. 10, 11 and 14, 2019-11-29 official text · verified 2026-10-28

6. Registered shares and transfer reports. Shares must be registered (bearer shares were abolished). The buyer must notify every share transfer to the company within five business days, with name, ID or RUC and domicile, and the company must report it to the Ministry within five business days of that notice; publicly offered companies report through their market supervisor. Breaches are fined 50 to 500 daily minimum wages. For the EAS, Ley 6480 applies the same reporting rules to share transfers, bylaw amendments, conversions and mergers.
Cost to do it: Fine PYG 5,853,850 to PYG 58,538,500.
Example: About US$1,001 to US$10,010.Ley Nº 5895/2017; Código Civil art. 1070 as amended; Ley Nº 6480/2020, Ley 5895 art. 5, 6, 8 and 11; Ley 6480 art. 18, 30, 33 and 34, 2017-10-05 official text · verified 2026-10-28

7. Unexchanged bearer shares. Companies had until 10 December 2019 to start the bylaw amendment procedure and up to 180 days after that to complete the exchange. Bearer shares not exchanged lost their economic rights and, six months after the deadline, their validity as share titles, with holders entitled only to reimbursement at par (claim prescribing in five years); companies had to reduce capital by their value. A company whose capital is not fully in registered shares cannot operate with reporting financial entities and has its RUC blocked, and one that took no step within six months of the deadline must dissolve and liquidate.Ley Nº 6399/2019 amending Ley Nº 5895/2017, Art. 1 (Ley 5895 art. 3 and 4) and art. 2, 2019-10-09 official text · verified 2026-10-28 · changed: Ley 6399/2019 (promulgated 9 October 2019) replaced the original 24 month exchange period of Ley 5895/2017 with a 10 December 2019 start date and a 180 day completion limit.

Event	Who	Deadline	Sanction
Formation of any legal person or structure	Legal representative	45 business days: shareholders, authorities, bylaws, beneficial owners	RUC block, banking freeze, 50 to 500 daily minimum wages or up to 30 percent of profits
Any change in registry data or beneficial owners	Legal representative	15 business days	Same
Share transfer	Buyer to the company	5 business days	50 to 500 daily minimum wages
Share transfer	Company to the Ministry	5 business days after the buyer's notice	50 to 500 daily minimum wages
Supporting documents	Entity	Keep 5 years	Same as Ley 6446

Beneficial ownership and transparency deadlines (Ley 6446/2019; Ley 5895/2017; verified 28 October 2026)

Worked example

A Paraguayan EAS is 100 percent owned by a Delaware LLC, which is owned 60 percent by a Spanish resident individual and 40 percent by a Brazilian fund whose manager controls its votes.
Within 45 business days of formation the EAS files: the LLC as shareholder, the LLC's ownership and powers granted in Paraguay, the Spanish individual (60 percent indirect, above 10 percent) and the individual who controls the fund's votes (40 percent of votes, above 25 percent) as beneficial owners, plus the EAS legal representative under the management test.
If the fund's controller cannot be identified, the EAS legal representative is presumed to be the beneficial owner for that holding.
If the LLC later sells 20 percent of the EAS shares, the buyer notifies the EAS within 5 business days, the EAS reports to the Ministry within 5 more, and the registry update is due within 15 business days; missing it risks a blocked RUC and a fine of PYG 5,853,850 to PYG 58,538,500 (about US$1,001 to US$10,010).

Step by step

Map the full ownership chain to the individuals and test each against the 10 percent capital, more than 25 percent votes, appointment rights, bylaw control and management or use of assets criteria.
Collect for each beneficial owner: name, ID or passport, tax ID, domicile, nationality and residence, profession, the qualifying condition and chain, and the start date; get apostilled supporting documents for foreign holding entities.
File through the Ministry registry within 45 business days of formation as a sworn statement.
Set an internal 15 business day trigger for any change in shareholders, managers, powers or beneficial owners, including changes upstream in foreign holding companies.
Keep the supporting file for five years and obtain the compliance certificate that banks request.
For share transfers, diary the five plus five business day reporting chain.

Common traps

The 15 business day update duty covers changes in the foreign holding chain, not just the Paraguayan register; an upstream sale abroad can make the local company non compliant.
A missing filing freezes all operations with banks and other reporting entities and blocks the RUC (art. 8), which stops invoicing and payroll until the compliance certificate is issued.
If the foreign parent's owners cannot be identified, the local legal representative is presumed to be the beneficial owner (art. 5), a personal exposure for nominee directors.
Fines can reach 30 percent of profits or dividends to be distributed, which can exceed the fixed 500 daily minimum wage cap for a profitable company.
The laws still name the Ministry of Hacienda and the SET; those functions now sit with the Ministry of Economy and Finance and the DNIT.
Parents in jurisdictions that allow bearer shares must report all of their shares (art. 3), not only holdings above the thresholds.

Sources

← Empresa individual de responsabilidad limitada (EIRL) in Paraguay: sole trader with ring fenced capital, minimum capital and registryAnnual compliance for Paraguayan companies: books, accounts, meetings, IRE and financial statements, RUC update, reserves and registry updates →

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