Client-related queries

A natural person who performs or has performed prominent public functions, for example:

1. a head of state, a head of government, a minister and deputy or an assistant minister;
2. a member of Parliament or similar legislative body;
3. a member of a party’s governing body;
4. a judge of a supreme, constitutional or other such higher court the decisions of which can be appealed only in exceptional cases;
5. a member of the supervisory board of a control authority or central bank of a country;
6. a member of managing, supervisory or administrative bodies of public undertakings (the list includes positions in the European Union and other international organizations);
7. a manager, deputy manager and member of a managing body of an international organization or a person performing equivalent functions.

A politically exposed person’s:

1. spouse;partner equal to the spouse in conformity with law of the person’s country of residence or a person who has shared household with the person for at least one year as of the date of entering into the transaction;
2. children and their spouses or partners;
3. parents

A natural person:

1. who has close business relations with the politically exposed person or together with whom the politically exposed person is the common beneficial owner of a legal person or a contractual legal entity;
2. who, as the beneficial owner, fully owns the legal person or contractual legal entity which was reportedly founded for the benefit of the actual politically exposed person.

A natural person (natural persons) who exercises (exercise) control over the Client. In the case of companies, the beneficial owner is:

1. the natural person (natural persons) who ultimately owns (own) or controls (control) the legal person through a sufficient number of shares or voting rights or direct or indirect ownership in that legal person, including holdings in the form of bearer shares, or through controlling otherwise, except for companies listed in regulated markets which are subject to the disclosure requirements consistent with the EU law or equivalent international standards which ensure adequate transparency of owner information. Direct ownership means that the natural person has a holding of 25% plus one share in the Client, or a holding of more than 25%. Indirect holding means that a holding of 25% plus one share or a holding of more than 25% in the Client belongs to the company which is under the control of a natural person (natural persons), or several companies which are under the control of the same natural person (same natural persons);
2. the natural person (natural persons) who is (are) the management board member(s) in the case the person referred to in the preceding paragraph cannot be determined upon exhaustion of all kinds of identification methods.

A legal person or other contractual legal formation, such as a partnership, civil law partnership or fund.

A custodial institution, a depositary institution, a specified insurance company and an investment entity.

Any entity that holds, as a substantial portion of its business, financial assets for the account of others. An entity holds financial assets for the account of others as a substantial portion of its business if the entity’s gross income attributable to the holding of financial assets and related financial services equals or exceeds 20% of the entity’s gross income during the shorter of:

1. the three-year period that ends on 31 December (or the final day of a non-calendar year accounting period) prior to the year in which the determination is being made or
2. the period during which the entity has been in existence.

Any entity that accepts deposits in the ordinary course of banking or any other similar business.

Any entity that is an insurance company (or the holding company of an insurance company) which issues, or is obligated to make payments with respect to, a cash value insurance contract or an annuity contract.

which primarily conducts as a business one or more of the following activities or operations for or on behalf of a client:

1. trading in money market instruments (cheques, bills, certificates of deposit, derivatives, etc.); foreign exchange; exchange, interest rate and index instruments; transferable securities; or commodity futures trading;
2. individual and collective portfolio management; or
3. otherwise investing, administering, or managing financial assets or money on behalf of other persons; or
4. the gross income of which is primarily attributable to investing, reinvesting, or trading in financial assets, if the entity is managed by another entity that is a depository institution, a custodial institution, a specified insurance company, or an investment entity described in subparagraph a.

Any entity which is not a financial institution.

Any NFE which meets any of the following criteria:

Active NFE - any NFE which meets any of the following criteria:
a) less than 50 % of the NFE’s gross income for the preceding calendar year or other appropriate reporting period is passive income and less than 50 % of the assets held by the NFE during the preceding calendar year or other appropriate reporting period are assets that produce or are held for the production of passive income;
b) the stock of the NFE is regularly traded on a regulated market or the NFE is a related entity of an entity the stock of which is regularly traded on a regulated securities market;
c) the NFE is a governmental entity, an international organization, a central bank, or an entity wholly owned by one or more of the foregoing;
d) substantially all of the activities of the NFE consist of holding, in whole or in part, the outstanding stock of, or providing financing and services to, one or more subsidiaries that engage in trades or businesses other than the business of a financial institution, except that an entity does not qualify for this status if the entity functions (or holds itself out) as an investment fund, such as a private equity fund, venture capital fund, leveraged buyout fund, or any investment vehicle whose purpose is to acquire or fund companies and then hold interests in those companies as capital assets for investment purposes;
e) the NFE is not yet operating a business and has no prior operating history, but is investing capital into assets with the intent to operate a business other than that of a Financial Institution, provided that the NFE does not qualify for this exception after the date that is 24 months after the date of the initial organization of the NFE;
f) the NFE was not a financial institution in the past five years, and is in the process of liquidating its assets or is reorganising with the intent to continue or recommence operations in a business other than that of a financial institution;
g) the NFE primarily engages in financing and hedging transactions with, or for, related entities that are not financial institutions, and does not provide financing or hedging services to any entity that is not a related entity, provided that the group of any such related entities is primarily engaged in a business other than that of a financial institution; or
h) the NFE meets all of the following requirements:
a. it is established and operated in its Member State or other jurisdiction of residence exclusively for religious, charitable, scientific, artistic, cultural, athletic, or educational purposes; or it is established and operated in its Member State or other jurisdiction of residence and it is a professional organization, business league, chamber of commerce, labour organization, agricultural or horticultural organization, civic league or an organization operated exclusively for the promotion of social welfare;
b. it is exempt from income tax in its Member State or other jurisdiction of residence;
c. it has no shareholders or members who have a proprietary or beneficial interest in its income or assets;
d. the applicable laws of the NFE’s Member State or other jurisdiction of residence or the NFE’s formation documents do not permit any income or assets of the NFE to be distributed to, or applied for the benefit of, a private person or non-charitable Entity other than pursuant to the conduct of the NFE’s charitable activities, or as payment of reasonable compensation for services rendered, or as payment representing the fair market value of property which the NFE has purchased; and
e. the applicable laws of the NFE’s Member State or other jurisdiction of residence or the NFE’s formation documents require that, upon the NFE’s liquidation or dissolution, all of its assets be distributed to a Governmental Entity or other non-profit organization, or escheat to the government of the NFE’s Member State or other jurisdiction of residence or any political subdivision thereof. Passive NFE - any entity that is not an active NFE and an investment entity described in subparagraph b that is not a participating jurisdiction financial institution.

Any entity that is not an active NFE and an investment entity described in subparagraph b that is not a participating jurisdiction financial institution.

In general, this term includes the following types of income:

1. Dividends, including income similar to dividend income;
2. Interest amounts, including income similar to interest income;
3. Certain lease, rental and royalty income which is not attributable to active business activities;
4. Annuities
5. Income attributable to transactions with derivative instruments (forward, futures, swap and option contracts and similar contracts), including to the sale thereof;
6. Income attributable to foreign currency transactions;
7. Income attributable to sale of assets generating passive income;
8. Income attributable to cash value insurance contracts.

The jurisdiction with respect to which the Republic of Estonia has an obligation arising from the EU law and/or international agreements to exchange information.

Any state with respect to which the Client has the obligation to pay taxes. The definition of tax residency is different in different states and may depend on the place of establishment, place of business of the Client, the location of its management or any other criteria. If the Client is not certain about the Client’s tax residency, the Client should consult with the Client’s tax consultant.

GIIN (Global Intermediary Identification Number) issued to the legal entity upon the application of FATCA.

Find additional information about the tax identification numbers of different countries here.

Non-resident: an enterprise registered in a foreign state or an Estonian enterprise if the enterprise is under the control of a person other than a resident of Estonia (i.e. the enterprise is in the ownership of (a) non-resident beneficial owner(s) to the extent of more than 25% or one or several non-residents have control over the enterprise in any other manner).