A person may apply to the registrar to become an authorised corporate service provider for the purposes of this Act if—
Where an application is made under this section, the registrar must check with the supervisory authority, or at least one of the supervisory authorities, specified in the application, to find out whether the applicant is known to and supervised by that authority.
Having carried out that check, the registrar must grant the application if—
The registrar must refuse the application if it appears to the registrar that the applicant is not a fit and proper person to carry out the functions of an authorised corporate service provider.
The provision that can be made in regulations under subsection (4)(c) includes provision conferring a discretion on the registrar.
Regulations under subsection (1)(c) or (4)(c) are subject to affirmative resolution procedure.
For the purposes of this section—
"Money Laundering Regulations" means the Money Laundering, Terrorist Financing and Transfer of Funds (Information on the Payer) Regulations 2017 (S.I. 2017/692);
"supervised": a person is supervised by a supervisory authority if regulation 7(1) of the Money Laundering Regulations provides that it is a supervisory authority for that person;
"supervisory authority" means an authority that is a supervisory authority under the Money Laundering Regulations (see regulation 7 of those Regulations).