The Public Commercial Register—How to Read and Search It?

Quick Overview

In the Commercial Register, you can verify whether a company exists, who represents it, where it is headquartered, what its business activities are, who serves on its statutory body, and whether it is, for example, in liquidation. The public registry also includes the Collection of Documents, where you can find, for example, founding documents, financial statements, or annual reports. You can search by company name, ID number, or file number on the justice.cz portal.

From the Commercial Register, you can quickly determine, in particular:

• whether the company is actually registered,
• who is authorized to sign contracts on its behalf,
• whether it is in liquidation,
• what documents it has published in the Collection of Documents,
• whether the information in the registry matches what the company tells you.

If you need to register a new company in the Commercial Register, change the managing director, registered office, method of representation, or any other information, we can prepare the necessary documents and the registration application for you so that the registry court does not unnecessarily return the application for additional information.

What is the Commercial Register?

The Commercial Register (sometimes called the Business Register) is a public list that includes all legally required information about business entities and certain individuals. The Commercial Register and the information recorded in it are freely accessible and serve to provide transparent information about business entities.

It can be useful, for example, when you’re planning to enter into a business partnership with a company and would like to do a little background check on it, when you, as a business entity, want to apply for a business bank account, or even when you want to verify who is authorized to act on behalf of the company.

The legal framework governing the Commercial Register is primarily set forth in the Act on Public Registers of Legal Entities and Natural Persons. This Act governs not only the Commercial Register itself but also other public registers, such as the Association Register, the Foundation Register, and the Register of Unit Owners’ Associations.

Who Is Required to Register Their Information in the Commercial Register

Not every business entity is required to be registered in the Commercial Register. However, if it belongs to one of the following groups, it should be listed in the register:

• business entities and cooperatives— general partnerships, limited partnerships, limited liability companies, and corporations,
• individuals (entrepreneurs) residing in the Czech Republic who voluntarily express an interest in registration or are required to do so by law (this applies when the average income for the last two fiscal periods exceeds 120 million crowns, excluding VAT),
• certain foreign business entities, which are specified in more detail in the Act on Public Registers of Legal Entities and Natural Persons.
• Other entities required to register under a special legal regulation (e.g., associations).

Interesting fact: Unlike natural persons, legal entities that are not required to be registered in the Commercial Register cannot register voluntarily. This primarily applies to municipalities, churches, religious societies, political parties, and political movements.

We know from experience that business owners often do not address registration until a bank, investor, or business partner requests an extract from the register. However, certain changes must be registered without undue delay. These typically include a change in the managing director, registered office, company name, or the manner in which the company is represented.

What must be recorded in the Commercial Register according to the law?

In addition to the entities required to be registered, the law also precisely defines the information that must be recorded. Simply put, all important information about the company and its governing bodies must be recorded. Specifically, the following information is recorded:

• the entity’s name and registered office (or, if applicable, the name of a natural person and their residential address),
• the scope of activities or business,
• the legal form of the legal entity,
• the date of establishment and dissolution of the legal entity,
• date of birth, social security number, and residential address—only for natural persons,
• the person’s identification number,
• name of the statutory body, number of its members (including their names and residential addresses), manner in which the statutory body acts on behalf of the legal entity, date of commencement and termination of office,
• name of the supervisory body (if established), number of its members (including their names and addresses of residence), date of commencement and termination of the term of office,
• the name and residential address of the authorized signatory, the manner in which the authorized signatory acts, and, if applicable, which branches of the company are affected by their activities,
• the amount of the authorized capital, if applicable to the entity,
• any other important information required by law or requested for entry by the registered entity,
• the date of entry in the registry.

Are you changing the managing director, registered office, company name, power of attorney, or manner of acting? When making changes to the Commercial Register, it is important to properly prepare not only the application but also the resolution of the general meeting, consent to the location of the registered office, or other attachments as required by the specific situation. We will help you take care of everything.

Collection of Documents of the Commercial Register

In addition to the publicly accessible list itself, the Commercial Register also includes a Collection of Documents. As the name suggests, the Collection of Documents contains all important documents related to the registered entity. These are typically documents that confirm the information entered in the registry (e.g., articles of incorporation) and certain other important documents (e.g., annual reports or financial statements).

How do I search the Commercial Register?

The Commercial Register and the Collection of Deeds fall under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Justice of the Czech Republic and are freely accessible online. You can search by IČO, entity name, or file number, if you know it. After entering any of the above details, you’ll see a list of all entities that match your search. In the basic overview, you’ll find not only the name, identification number, and file number, but also the registered office, date of registration, and information on whether the business entity is in liquidation.

At the same time, you can view a list of all other data (not only the currently valid information but also all previously entered data) or access the Collection of Documents to review individual documents. In the extended extract, in addition to all the mandatory information mentioned above, you’ll also find details on any insolvency proceedings, enforcement actions against shares, and liquidation, including important contact information for whom to contact. You can then print out all the data available in the registry immediately or save it to your computer as a PDF file.

The Public Commercial Register—How to Use It?

The Czech Commercial Register is part of the BRIS (Business Registers Interconnection System) platform, which links the commercial registers of EU countries, Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway. This information may be useful to readers, especially those interested in international business relations.

How Does It Differ from the Trade Register?

You may be wondering what the difference is between the Commercial Register and the Trade Register, since at first glance some of the information recorded in them may seem similar. Like the Commercial Register, the Trade Register is available online. It also contains basic information about the business entity, such as first and last name, registered office, identification number, and business activity.

The fundamental difference, however, lies in the entities listed in the register. Unlike the Commercial Register, the Trade License Register—more precisely, the Trade Licensing Portal (RŽP)—contains records of all holders of trade licenses, i.e., self-employed individuals (OSVČ). This also applies to self-employed individuals who have terminated their trade or whose trade is currently suspended. Anyone who is granted a trade license is automatically entered into the Trade Register. Therefore, there is no need to apply for registration, as is the case with the Commercial Register.

Unlike the Commercial Register, the Trade Register is administered by the Ministry of Industry and Trade of the Czech Republic, represented by the Trade Licensing Office of the Czech Republic—and the information publicly available in the Trade Register also differs. You can also view the Trade Register at any time, though some information will remain confidential. This includes, for example, the entrepreneur’s birth number (usually the business ID number) or information about fines imposed.

Commercial Registers of Companies Abroad

What if, for example, you’re planning to collaborate with a foreign company and want to obtain basic information about it? Many other countries offer company registries. Given the frequent collaboration with our closest neighbors, you may find the Slovak commercial register useful; it is very similar to the Czech one and can also be found online on the website of the Ministry of Justice of the Slovak Republic.

The Ministry of Justice also administers the commercial register in Poland. If you’re planning to enter the German market, the national commercial register will be useful. Things are a bit more complicated with our northernmost neighbors. In Austria, access to the commercial register is subject to a fee. An alternative here is commercial databases, which, however, operate on the principle of voluntary registration and therefore do not contain data on all companies.

Avoid Errors in the Commercial Register

The most common problem we see with clients isn’t the actual incorporation of the company, but the failure to update the information afterward. A company may change its registered office, managing director, or method of signing contracts, but the old information remains in the registry. This can complicate the process of entering into contracts, dealing with banks, and proving who was authorized to act on behalf of the company.

For example, one company changed its managing director but failed to record the change in the Commercial Register. In the meantime, the new managing director was signing contracts with suppliers, and when the bank reviewed the documents, it discovered a discrepancy between the actual situation and the extract from the register. This resulted in a delay in financing and the need to quickly submit the necessary documentation to the registry court. Similar complications can be avoided by preparing changes in a timely manner and supporting them with the correct documents.

Incorrect or even incomplete entries in the commercial register can cause you not only a number of inconveniences but also a fine. We’d be happy to help you prepare the necessary documents and handle the registration with the Commercial Register itself, ensuring that everything proceeds smoothly from a legal standpoint. We can handle it online and tailor the process precisely to your needs.

Summary

The Public Commercial Register is an official online registry where you can verify basic information about business entities and other registered entities: name, registered office, identification number, statutory bodies, method of representation, scope of business, power of attorney, authorized capital, and history of changes. It includes the Collection of Documents, where you can find, for example, founding documents, financial statements, and annual reports. In particular, business entities and cooperatives, certain individuals, and other entities as specified by special regulations are required to be registered in the registry. When verifying a business partner, it is advisable to check not only the company’s existence but also who is authorized to act on its behalf and whether the information provided is accurate. An incorrect or outdated entry can lead to delays, problems when concluding contracts, and even penalties; therefore, it is advisable to address any changes in a timely manner and with the appropriate supporting documentation.