The Cyprus Companies Register: How to Search and Verify a Company in 2026
Last updated: 20 August 2026
Need to check a Cyprus company? Start with the Cyprus Companies Register. You might be about to sign a contract with a Cypriot supplier. You might be chasing an unpaid invoice, buying a business, or simply confirming that a counterparty exists. In each case, the register is where you start. The Department of the Registrar of Companies and Intellectual Property (DRCIP) maintains it, and it holds the official record of every company registered in Cyprus. This guide explains how to search the register, what is free, what costs a fee, and how to read what you find.
Table of Contents
- What the Cyprus Companies Register Records
- How to Search the Register Online
- What Is Free and What Costs a Fee
- How to Verify a Company Before Doing Business With It
- Beneficial Ownership: Who Can See What
- Checking Whether a Company Name Is Taken
- Keeping Your Own Company's File Accurate
- Frequently Asked Questions
What the Cyprus Companies Register Records
The register is the public face of the Companies Law, Cap. 113. For every Cyprus company, it records:
- the name and registration number (the "HE" number);
- status — active, dissolved, or in strike-off proceedings;
- the registered office address;
- directors and secretary;
- shareholders and share capital;
- registered charges over the company's assets; and
- the filing history — annual returns, financial statements and changes over time.
Overseas companies with a Cyprus branch appear in a parallel register. So do partnerships under Cap. 116. The same department keeps both.
How to Search the Register Online
Searching is free and takes a minute. Open the online search for organisations on the Registrar of Companies portal. Enter the company's name, part of it, or its registration number. The search returns matching entities with their number, exact registered name, type and status. From there, open the organisation's profile. It shows the registered office, the officials and the filing record.
Two practical tips. First, search by number where you have it. Cypriot company names transliterate between Greek and English inconsistently, so partial-name searches can miss the entity you want. Second, check the status line before anything else. An entity under strike-off, or already dissolved, is telling you most of what you need to know.
What Is Free and What Costs a Fee
The basic search is free to anyone. It shows the name, registration number, entity type, status and registered office. Beyond that, the Registrar charges modest prescribed fees. Inspecting a company's full electronic file costs €10. Certified copies of certificates or filed documents — incorporation, directors and secretary, shareholders, registered office — carry a small per-document charge.
Why pay for certified copies? Because banks, courts and foreign authorities generally require them. A screenshot of the search page is not evidence of anything.
How to Verify a Company Before Doing Business With It
A proper counterparty check reads the register with specific questions in mind:
- Is the company active — or in strike-off or liquidation?
- Are its annual returns and financial statements up to date? Persistent non-filing is the single best early-warning sign of a shell or an abandoned entity.
- Who are the directors and shareholders? Do they match who you think you are dealing with?
- Are there registered charges over the company's assets in favour of banks or other creditors? That matters most if you are extending credit or buying assets.
For meaningful exposures, go further. Pair the register check with certified documents. Where warranted, add fuller due diligence on litigation, insolvency and the people behind the company. And if the relationship has already gone wrong, the same records drive enforcement strategy — see our guide to debt recovery in Cyprus.
Beneficial Ownership: Who Can See What
The UBO register sits apart from the main companies register. Since the Court of Justice of the EU's 2022 ruling on public access, it is also closed to the general public. Who can see it? Competent authorities, plus banks and other obliged entities running AML checks. Anyone else must demonstrate a legitimate interest first.
For companies, the deadlines are strict. File UBO details within 90 days of incorporation. Report changes within 45 days. Confirm the entries every year between 1 October and 31 December. Miss a deadline and penalties accrue daily — see our UBO register guide.
Checking Whether a Company Name Is Taken
The same search doubles as a first availability check when you are forming a company. If the name — or something confusingly close — already appears, the Registrar will refuse it. Formal name approval is applied for separately: €10 standard, or €30 accelerated. An approved name is reserved for six months. Restricted words such as "bank", "insurance" or "trust" need regulatory consent. The full process sits within our Cyprus company formation guide.
Keeping Your Own Company's File Accurate
Everything the register shows about your own company is your board's responsibility. The annual return (HE32) must be filed within 28 days of the AGM, with financial statements attached. Changes of directors, secretary, registered office or shareholders must be notified within the prescribed deadlines.
One deadline now has teeth. Since the 2026 reform, a change of directors filed more than 12 months late is deemed effective only 12 months before filing. That can extend a departed director's liability window. Late filings accrue penalties. And a neglected file is exactly what counterparties running the checks above will see. These obligations sit with the directors personally — see our guide to directors' duties in Cyprus.
Frequently Asked Questions
How do I check if a company is registered in Cyprus?
Search the Registrar of Companies' free online search by company name or HE number. The result shows the registered name, number, type, status and registered office. The company's fuller file can be inspected for a €10 fee.
Is the Cyprus companies register free to search?
Yes — the basic search is free. Prescribed fees apply only for two things: inspecting a company's full file (€10), and certified copies of certificates and filed documents.
Can I see who owns a Cyprus company?
Registered shareholders appear in the company's file. Ultimate beneficial owners are different. They sit in a separate UBO register which, since the CJEU's 2022 ruling, is open to authorities and obliged entities rather than the general public. Others need to show a legitimate interest.
How do I know if a Cyprus company is in good standing?
Check three things. Its status is active. Its annual returns and financial statements are filed up to date. No strike-off notice is pending. For transactions of any size, back the search with certified certificates from the Registrar.
Speak to Connor Legal
Connor Legal conducts company searches, corporate due diligence and counterparty verification in Cyprus daily. We also keep our clients' own registers and filings in good standing. Need a company checked, or your own file brought up to date? Contact the firm.
