The Austrian Commercial Register

The institution handling the registration process for all legal entities in Austria is the Austrian Commercial Register. The institution ensures the registration process is done according to law, and that every company develops legal activities.

The Commercial Register in Austria stores information about companies in the company register database, which is governed by the Federal Computing Centre. The Records of the Trade Register in Austria are kept by commercial courts and regional courts. According to the new Austrian Company Registration Act, the register also stores information on private foundations and cooperatives.

Searching information about companies can be done through the electronic database by anyone and includes data about the entity's name, legal form, registered office and address etc. Public inquiries are answered by six assigned providers who also collect court fees.

Searching information about a company can be done by inserting the Austrian company name, or the registration number. Also it is possible to enter the name or even a part of the name of owners, or managers of a legal entity in order to get information on the respective entity. Also the database contains historic data and track changes. An individual can also ask for an excerpt via e-mail and the electronic excerpt is identical to the print one which can be obtained from any company registration office.

Entrepreneurs can register a company with the Commercial Register in Austria by visiting the institution in person and filling an application, or by downloading the application, sending it along other requested documents by e-mail. The Austrian Commercial Register automatically informs the tax authorities when the certificates of registration of new companies are issued.

The Austrian Company Registrar is governed by the Ministry of Justice and its purpose is to simplify the communication between entrepreneurs and law, to ensure that every company acts legally and to provide valuable information.

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