A German company number needs its register court.

A German register number is identified together with its register court. HRB 123456 in one court's register can refer to a different company from the same number in another court. Keep the court, register section and number together from the first search to the final approval.

The Common Register Portal of the German Federal States brings the courts' records into one search. The Unternehmensregister adds published accounts and announcements. The Transparenzregister holds beneficial ownership information under a separate access framework.

Build the exact entity match

Ask the counterparty for its legal name, legal form, registered seat and court-qualified register number. A website brand or invoice heading can be a trading style. The legal entity named in the contract should match the register result and the recipient of payment.

The register section matters. HRB generally covers corporations such as a GmbH or AG; HRA covers registered traders and partnerships. An entry in another register, such as the partnership register, should be recorded with its own section. Preserve the German spelling and punctuation alongside any English rendering.

Search the common portal by name when the number is missing. Compare the seat, address and legal form before choosing a result. If the company has moved between court districts or changed name, follow the recorded changes rather than treating the older document as a separate organisation.

Choose the extract for the question

The portal provides several forms of register content. Selecting the right one avoids buying a large file that still fails to answer the actual onboarding question.

• Current extract: the Aktueller Abdruck shows entries currently valid, including registered particulars, management and representation rules.
• Chronological extract: the Chronologischer Abdruck shows the sequence of entries since electronic record-keeping, useful for former directors, names and capital changes.
• Historical extract: the Historischer Abdruck covers the earlier record before electronic conversion, where available.
• Filed documents: the document tree contains items such as articles of association and a GmbH shareholder list.

The Unternehmensregister's explanation of document types distinguishes these records. A fresh current extract answers who is registered today; a chronological extract explains how the registered position changed. Record both the retrieval date and the dates of the relevant entries.

Read representation before accepting a signature

A managing director's name on the extract does not by itself settle whether one signature is sufficient. Read the general representation clause and any individual rule attached to that director. The record may require joint representation or give an individual authority different from the general arrangement.

A Prokura holder has a registered commercial authority whose terms should also be read. If the person signing is absent from the extract, request the relevant power of attorney and check who granted it. Link the authority to the specific transaction and confirm any restrictions with the company's legal adviser when needed.

A supplier's account manager may negotiate an order without being authorised to execute the contract. Keep the business contact, registered management and proposed signatory as separate fields in your review.

Follow the GmbH shareholder list

For a GmbH, retrieve the latest filed Gesellschafterliste from the document tree. It identifies registered shareholders and their shares. Note the list's date, the date it was lodged, the nominal amounts and the percentages, then compare them with the capital position in the extract.

An incorporation document identifies subscribers at formation. A later shareholder list can show a different ownership position. If the dates do not align, ask for an explanation and the intervening documents before calculating indirect interests.

Where a shareholder is another company, record that company's own court-qualified number and continue the chain. Aggregate relevant interests held through different paths by the same person. Examine voting arrangements and other control rights alongside economic ownership; a simple multiplication of percentages does not answer every beneficial ownership question.

The public register does not provide the same shareholder disclosure for an AG. Request the appropriate company-held ownership evidence and relevant market disclosures where applicable. A missing public shareholder list should be recorded as a disclosure limitation.

Treat the Transparenzregister as a separate request

The Federal Office of Administration's information on the Transparenzregister describes the beneficial ownership framework. Access depends on the applicant's category and legal basis; general public access changed following the Court of Justice judgment of 22 November 2022.

An obliged entity should use the register's authorised due-diligence route. Other applicants must check whether they can demonstrate a qualifying legitimate interest under the rules then in force. A normal public Handelsregister search does not create permission to obtain restricted beneficial owner information.

If your organisation cannot access the register directly, ask the client for permitted evidence of its own filing and the underlying ownership documents. Record the origin and limits of that evidence. Avoid presenting a client-supplied copy as an independently retrieved register result.

Add accounts and activity checks

Search the Unternehmensregister for the company's accounts and financial publications. Match each filing to the same entity and record its reporting period. A recently retrieved balance sheet can still describe an older financial year.

The detail available depends on the company's filing category. Smaller entities may publish or deposit reduced information. Absence of a full profit and loss statement should prompt a question about disclosure requirements and alternative financial evidence, rather than an automatic conclusion that accounts were not prepared.

The registered corporate object describes what the company is constituted to do. It does not establish that a regulated service is authorised. For activities requiring a licence, check the relevant regulator's register and match the licence holder to the contracting entity.

Preserve the evidence in German and in translation

Keep the original extract and filed documents, the portal name, retrieval time and the complete court-qualified identifier. Preserve the relevant representation and shareholder passages in any translation. Translation should explain legal terms without changing the underlying legal form or authority.

An ordinary download may be sufficient for internal onboarding. A court or foreign authority may require a certified extract, translation, apostille or another form of authentication. Confirm the receiving party's requirements before ordering these services; certification confirms the document's origin within its stated scope.

For a company search order, specify the court and number, current or historical extracts, the latest GmbH shareholder list and any required certification. We record the source, retrieval time and request ID. Price and expected turnaround are confirmed when the order is accepted.

Can your reviewer connect the contract signatory and ultimate owner to the same court-qualified German company?