Commercial Register of Liechtenstein: How to Look Up a Company, What an Extract Shows and What It Costs
The Office of Justice in Vaduz keeps the Liechtenstein commercial register, and its entries are public. Extracts are issued in German as a rule, and the official fee under the fee ordinance of 1 August 2024 runs from CHF 10 to CHF 15 (CHF 20 minimum for a paper extract sent by post). Beneficial owners sit in a separate, restricted register.
Short answer
This guide explains how the Handelsregister (commercial register) of Liechtenstein works, what a lookup gives you and what the official fees are. It describes the register as the statutes and the Office of Justice describe it, and it sells nothing. If you are preparing a formation instead, start from the company registration page.
What is the commercial register of Liechtenstein, and who keeps it?
The Handelsregister is the public register of firms and legal entities in Liechtenstein. The Amt für Justiz (Office of Justice) in Vaduz keeps it. Against the set fees it allows inspection, issues extracts on request and certifies that a given firm is not registered under its own name (HRV Art. 6). English searches for the "company register", "company registry" or "business register" of Liechtenstein all lead to this register. A company acquires legal personality only by entry in it (PGR Art. 106(1)). The register of beneficial owners has a similar name but is a different register; a later section draws the line.
Who keeps which register, and who files
| name | role | rule |
|---|---|---|
| Office of Justice (Amt für Justiz), Vaduz | keeps the commercial register, issues extracts, allows inspection | HRV Art. 6 |
| Commercial register (Handelsregister) | register of firms and legal entities; entries and supporting documents are public | HRV Art. 6(1) |
| Firm index (Firmenindex) | alphabetical index of registered firms; also holds names of deposited foundations, not trusts | HRV Art. 13(1) |
| Official publication organ and a website ordered by day | publish every entry | PGR Art. 956 |
| Beneficial-owner register | separate register, not public | VwbPG Art. 17 |
| Licensed trustee named in the engagement letter | formation for third parties and connected interventions before authorities; VCS prepares and coordinates, the trustee files | TrHG Art. 2(a) |
Source: Commercial Register Ordinance (HRV), Persons and Companies Act (PGR), Beneficial Owner Register Act (VwbPG) and Trustee Act (TrHG), articles as named in the table.
Is the Liechtenstein commercial register public?
Yes. The entries in the commercial register, including the supporting documents to them, are public (HRV Art. 6(1), version of 1 July 2026). The Office of Justice says the same on its public access page and adds that inspection costs a fee.
One qualifier matters. Applications and supporting documents of an entry may be inspected by anyone who makes a legitimate interest credible (HRV Art. 18(1)); the entries themselves are public without that condition. The Office also states that extracts are generally issued only in certified form and are not sent by fax.
How do I search for a company in the Liechtenstein commercial register?
The Office keeps a firm index (Firmenindex), an alphabetical list of registered firms. It also holds the names of deposited foundations, but not of trusts (HRV Art. 13(1)). The Office's German page on the firm index and the Handelsregisterauszug (register extract) says that a link leads straight to the index.
This guide names no search address and does not say whether the online index is free, because the sources read for it do not state the terms. Check the Office's own page before you rely on it. The index leads you to a firm. The full content of an entry comes with an extract from the Office.
If you search by number, note that the Liechtenstein commercial register number is still valid and was not replaced by the Swiss company identification number (UID), according to the Office of Statistics in its UID FAQ.
What does an entry in the register show?
A register sheet opens with a header: the firm number, the legal form, the date of first entry, the date of deletion and a reference to an earlier sheet, where there is one (HRV Art. 11(1)(a) to (e)). In the cases the law designates, the entry gives the business or delivery address, meaning the business premises or office of management with street and house number (HRV Art. 52(2)). For every person named it gives the surname, at least one full first name, the date of birth, the nationality and the residence or domestic professional address (HRV Art. 52(4)).
Entries are made in German (HRV Art. 4(1)). Only facts proven by suitable documents are entered (PGR Art. 961(1)), and every entry must be true and must not deceive (PGR Art. 960(1)). This guide does not say whether the owners of a company appear in an entry. Data on beneficial owners sits in a separate register, covered below.
What a register entry contains and the rule behind it
| item | what the entry shows | rule |
|---|---|---|
| Sheet header | firm number, legal form, date of first entry, date of deletion, reference to an earlier sheet | HRV Art. 11(1)(a) to (e) |
| Address | in the cases the law designates: business premises or office of management, with street and house number | HRV Art. 52(2) |
| Persons | surname, at least one full first name, date of birth, nationality, residence or domestic professional address | HRV Art. 52(4) |
| Language | entries in German; supporting documents may be in another language | HRV Art. 4(1), (2) |
| Truth and proof | only proven facts are entered, and entries must be true; the documents stay with the register | PGR Art. 960(1), 961(1), (5) |
Source: Commercial Register Ordinance (HRV) and Persons and Companies Act (PGR), articles as named in the table.
Who has to be entered, and when does a company exist?
Anyone who runs a trading, manufacturing or other commercially run business must register the firm at the place of the head office (PGR Art. 945(1)). The register also holds, among others, sole proprietorships, procurists and representatives (Repräsentanten), legal entities, branches, trusteeships and investment funds (HRV Art. 7(1)).
A company acquires legal personality only by entry in the commercial register (PGR Art. 106(1)). An Anstalt (establishment) arises and acquires legal personality only on entry as well (PGR Art. 538(2)). If you are preparing a formation file, read which papers a non-resident shareholder provides for a Liechtenstein AG.
How do I order an extract, and what does it cost?
The fees below are official fees under the fee ordinance GbHr-GebV, version of 1 August 2024. They are not a VCS price, and this guide does not add them up into a package.
Decide what you need
The entry is public. The applications and supporting documents behind it need a credible legitimate interest (HRV Art. 18(1)).
Apply to the Office of Justice
Extracts are issued on request (HRV Art. 6(2)). This guide names no ordering channel.
Expect German and a certified form
Extracts and certificates are issued in German as a rule (HRV Art. 6(3)), and the Office says extracts are generally issued only in certified form.
Pay the official fee
CHF 15 for a certified paper extract (CHF 20 minimum if sent by post), CHF 10 for an uncertified electronic extract and CHF 15 for a certified electronic one (GbHr-GebV Annex 2).
Check the free cases
Two extracts are free after every register entry, one after the entry of the filing date of the annual accounts, and extracts for domestic official use carry no fee (GbHr-GebV Annex 2; HRV Art. 6(4)).
No source read for this guide gives a processing time, so none is stated.
Official fees in CHF, GbHr-GebV, version of 1 August 2024
| service | official fee (CHF) | rule |
|---|---|---|
| Certified paper extract | 15 (20 minimum if sent by post) | GbHr-GebV Annex 2 |
| Electronic extract, uncertified | 10 | GbHr-GebV Annex 2 |
| Electronic extract, certified | 15 | GbHr-GebV Annex 2 |
| Free extracts | two after every register entry; one after every entry of the filing date of the annual accounts | GbHr-GebV Annex 2 |
| Inspection of a file or information about its contents | 50 per file | GbHr-GebV Annex 2, A.5 |
| Copies | 1 per A4 page (3 for A3); colour 3 per A4 page (6 for A3) | GbHr-GebV Annex 2 |
| Certification of copies | 4 per page | GbHr-GebV Annex 2 |
| Official confirmations other than those under Art. 552 § 20(4) PGR | 50 to 100 each; those under Art. 552 § 20(4) PGR: 15 (20 minimum if sent by post) | GbHr-GebV Annex 2, A.1 and A.1a |
| Special clarification on whether a firm name is admissible | 50 | GbHr-GebV Annex 2, A.10 |
Source: Fee ordinance GbHr-GebV (LGBl. 2003 Nr. 67), Annex 2, version of 1 August 2024.
Official fees for an extract
Fee ordinance, version of 1 August 2024
Is a change in your entry waiting to be filed?
We prepare the documents for a change of director, address or capital; the licensed trustee named in your engagement letter files it.
Can I see the filed documents, and how do I prove a company name is free?
Inspecting documents
Applications and supporting documents of an entry may be inspected by anyone who makes a legitimate interest credible (HRV Art. 18(1)). Inspection of a file, or information about its contents, costs CHF 50 per file (GbHr-GebV Annex 2, A.5). Copies and their certification have their own fee lines in the table above. The documents stay with the register (PGR Art. 961(5)).
Confirming that a name is not taken
On request the Office certifies that a given firm is not registered under its own name (HRV Art. 6(2)). Official confirmations other than those under Art. 552 § 20(4) PGR cost CHF 50 to 100 each (GbHr-GebV Annex 2, A.1a), and a special clarification of whether a firm name is admissible costs CHF 50 (A.10). This guide does not match the certificate to one of those two lines, because the sources read for it do not say which applies.
What does publication do, and which version of an entry counts?
The Office publishes every entry in full and without delay in the official publication organ, and also on a website ordered by day (PGR Art. 956(1), (4)). A publication can be held against anyone from the end of the day of its public appearance (PGR Art. 959(1)). If application, entry and publication contradict each other, the entry prevails first, then the publication, then the supporting documents (PGR Art. 959(2)). If entry and publication contradict each other, a third party in good faith may also rely on the publication against the person in whose matter the entry was made (PGR Art. 959(3)). This guide does not name the organ or the website.
Which text prevails: the entry first, the publication second, the supporting documents last (PGR Art. 959(2)).
How and when do changes reach the register?
A change to an entered fact must also be entered, and the application goes in without delay (unverzüglich, PGR Art. 965(1)); the statute gives no day count. Formation for third parties and connected interventions before authorities are trustee activities (TrHG Art. 2(a)). For a change of director or capital prepared for the trustee's filing, we prepare and coordinate, and the licensed trustee named in your engagement letter files.
The Office verifies the statutory conditions before it makes an entry. Where an entry no longer matches the facts, it asks the responsible persons to correct it within 14 days, with the threat of an administrative fine or, in serious cases, its immediate imposition (PGR Art. 968(1)). That period is a correction demand, not a filing deadline. The 30-day duty belongs to the beneficial-owner report and its changes (VwbPG Art. 4(4), (5)); since the cyberattack of 30 July 2026 the Office keeps deadlines that cannot be met suspended, and this guide states no end date. At least every two years the Office asks municipal or administrative authorities about newly established businesses (HRV Art. 50(2)).
What do the annual accounts show in the register?
Companies under PGR Art. 1063 file the approved annual accounts with the Office of Justice before the end of the twelfth month after the balance-sheet date, with the audit report unless the review is waived (PGR Art. 1122(1)). The date of filing is entered in the register (PGR Art. 1130(3)), so a reader can see whether a company filed. If a filing is defective, the Office sets a correction deadline of at most four weeks (PGR Art. 1130(1)). The filing-date entry is one fact a buyer or a counterparty can check. This guide does not say whether the accounts themselves are open to public inspection.
What does the commercial register not show?
Beneficial owners are not in the commercial register. They sit in a separate register kept by the Office of Justice, which is not public. Third parties apply to the Office against a fee. For a stand-alone entity they declare that the data is needed to fight money laundering (VwbPG Art. 17(1) to (3)). For any other entity they must make a legitimate interest credible, meaning use of the data in the fight against money laundering, or show a control-conferring holding; data of founders and protectors without control are excluded, and the VwbP-Kommission decides on the application (Art. 17(4) to (7), (10)). Extracts from that register have no public faith (VwbPG Art. 8(3)).
After the cyberattack of 30 July 2026 the register was inaccessible to external users. The Office states that operations for external users resume on 5 October 2026 on a limited basis, that deadlines which cannot be met stay suspended, and that a missed suspended deadline creates no administrative-penal liability.
Foundations and trusts follow another path. Documents deposited under PGR Art. 990, and the registrations and documents of foundations and trusts that are not entered, can be requested by the depositor and the person authorised; certain data (name, registered office, foundation council) may be disclosed to third parties by official confirmation. Entered trusteeships are recorded in the register itself (HRV Art. 7(1)(h)); the firm index omits only their names (HRV Art. 13(1)).
The commercial register next to the registers it is often confused with
| register | what this guide says |
|---|---|
| Commercial register (Handelsregister) | public entries and supporting documents of firms and legal entities, kept by the Office of Justice |
| Firm index | alphabetical list of registered firms, with deposited foundations but without trusts (HRV Art. 13(1)) |
| Beneficial-owner register | beneficial owners; separate and not public; third parties apply to the Office of Justice (VwbPG Art. 17) |
| Deposits under PGR Art. 990 | open to the depositor and the person authorised; certain data by official confirmation |
| Land register (Grundbuch) | a different register; not covered here |
| VAT register | a different register; not covered here |
| FMA register of licence holders | a different register; not covered here |
| Trademark register | a different register; not covered here |
Source: HRV, PGR and VwbPG, articles as named in the table.
Two registers, two audiences
Kept by
Commercial register: Office of JusticeBeneficial-owner register: Office of JusticeAccess
Commercial register: Public entriesBeneficial-owner register: Separate, restricted access
From our practice
We collect your documents and prepare the draft; the licensed trustee named in your engagement letter files.
Sources
- Commercial Register Ordinance (HRV): public entries, extracts, language, firm index, sheet header, persons, inspection
- Fee ordinance (GbHr-GebV): extract, inspection, copy and confirmation fees, version of 1 August 2024
- Persons and Companies Act (PGR): legal personality, duty to register, publication, changes, annual accounts
- Beneficial Owner Register Act (VwbPG): beneficial-owner register, third-party disclosure, 30-day report and changes
- Trustee Act (TrHG): Art. 2(a), formation and interventions for third parties
- Office of Justice, public access to the register: register public, certified extracts, deposits under PGR Art. 990
- Office of Justice, various verifications: change entered, pre-entry check, municipal enquiry
- Office of Justice, register of beneficial owners: cyberattack of 30 July 2026 and reopening on 5 October 2026
- Office of Statistics, UID FAQ: the Liechtenstein register number is still valid
- Office of Justice, firm index and register extract (German): link to the firm index
Fees: GbHr-GebV, version of 1 August 2024. The Office pages were last updated on 17.12.2023 (public access), 10.02.2025 (verifications) and 21.10.2026 (beneficial-owner register). The suspension of beneficial-owner deadlines is stated in the Office of Justice newsletter 6/2026.
Frequently asked questions about the Liechtenstein commercial register
What is the commercial register of Liechtenstein and who keeps it?
The commercial register (Handelsregister) is the public register of firms and legal entities in Liechtenstein. The Office of Justice (Amt für Justiz) in Vaduz keeps it, issues extracts on request and allows inspection against the set fees. A company acquires legal personality only by entry in it, under Article 106 of the Persons and Companies Act.
Is the Liechtenstein commercial register public?
Yes. Under Article 6(1) of the Commercial Register Ordinance the entries, including the supporting documents to them, are public. Applications and supporting documents may be inspected by anyone who makes a legitimate interest credible, and inspection of a file costs a fee. The Office of Justice describes the register, including applications and supporting documents, as public.
How can I search for a company in the Liechtenstein commercial register?
The Office of Justice keeps a firm index (Firmenindex), an alphabetical list of registered firms. It also holds the names of deposited foundations but not of trusts. For the full content of an entry, order an extract from the Office. This guide names no search address, because the terms of the online index are not verified.
Is there an online search, and is it free?
The Office of Justice's German page says that a link leads directly to the firm index. Whether the online index is free, how much of a register sheet it shows and whether an extract can be ordered online are not stated in the sources read for this guide, so we make no claim. Check the Office's own page before you rely on it.
What does an entry in the Liechtenstein commercial register show?
A register sheet opens with the firm number, the legal form, the date of first entry, the date of deletion and any earlier sheet. In the cases the law designates, an entry also gives the business or delivery address. Each person named appears with name, date of birth, nationality and residence or domestic professional address. Entries are made in German.
Does the register show the shareholders or the owners of a company?
This guide does not say whether the owners of a company appear in the register, because the entry rules for each legal form were not read in full. What it can say is that data on beneficial owners sits in a separate register, which is not public. Ask the Office of Justice what a given entry contains.
Where do I find the beneficial owners of a Liechtenstein company?
They are held in the non-public register of beneficial owners (VwbP) of the Office of Justice. Third parties apply against a fee: for a stand-alone entity with a declaration that the data is needed to fight money laundering, for others with a credible legitimate interest. After the 30 July 2026 cyberattack, access resumed on 5 October 2026, limited.
How do I order an extract from the Liechtenstein commercial register, and what does it cost?
Apply to the Office of Justice. The official fee under the fee ordinance (version 1 August 2024) is CHF 15 for a certified paper extract, CHF 20 minimum if it is sent by post, CHF 10 for an uncertified electronic extract and CHF 15 for a certified electronic one. Two extracts are free after every register entry.
In which language is the extract issued, and can I get an English one?
Extracts and certificates are issued in German as a rule, under Article 6(3) of the Commercial Register Ordinance. Entries are made in German, and supporting documents may be filed in another language. This guide does not promise an English extract, a translation or an apostille, because none of them is confirmed in the sources read.
What is the difference between a certified and an uncertified extract?
The fee ordinance lists both: CHF 10 for an uncertified electronic extract and CHF 15 for a certified one. The Office says that extracts are generally issued only in certified form and are not sent by fax. How the two fit together in practice is not verified here, so ask the Office which form it will issue.
Can I see the articles of association and other filed documents?
Supporting documents filed with an entry may be inspected by anyone who makes a legitimate interest credible (Article 18(1)). Inspection of a file, or information about its contents, costs CHF 50 per file. Copies cost CHF 1 per A4 page, and certification of copies costs CHF 4 per page.
How do I prove that a company name is not taken in Liechtenstein?
The Office of Justice certifies on request that a firm is not registered under its own name (Article 6(2)). Official confirmations other than those under Art. 552 § 20(4) PGR cost CHF 50 to 100, and a special clarification of firm-name admissibility costs CHF 50. Which line applies to the certificate itself is not verified here.
Are the annual accounts of a Liechtenstein company public?
Companies under Article 1063 of the Persons and Companies Act file approved annual accounts with the Office before the end of the twelfth month after the balance-sheet date. The filing date is entered in the register, so a reader can see whether a company filed. Whether the accounts themselves are open to public inspection is not verified here.
Is a foundation or a trust listed in the register?
A deposited foundation has its name in the firm index; a trust under Article 897 ff. does not. Documents of deposited and non-entered foundations and trusts can be requested by the depositor and the authorised person; certain data (name, registered office, foundation council) may go to third parties by official confirmation. Entered trusteeships are in the register itself.
What is the commercial register number, and is it the same as the Swiss UID?
The Office of Statistics says in its UID FAQ that the Liechtenstein commercial register number is still valid. It was not replaced by the Swiss company identification number. On a register sheet the firm number is the first item of the header, under Article 11(1)(a) of the Commercial Register Ordinance.