How to Search the Hong Kong Companies Register

Run the initial company search through the official portal

Open the Companies Registry e-Services Portal and enter e-Search. The official electronic-search FAQ confirms that you can search as an Unregistered Online User. Subscription can be useful for recurring work, but it is not a prerequisite for an occasional public search.

1. Select the appropriate user route and enter the public e-Search service.
2. Search the complete legal name in the appropriate name-search mode or use the company’s identifier.
3. Check the returned name, company type, relevant dates and status against the counterparty’s documents.
4. Resolve any historic company-number mapping or name-change issue before choosing the entity.
5. Save the query and result, then select the additional product needed for the decision.

Use the full intended name for an exact search and the supported partial-name mode where spelling is uncertain. For Chinese-name searches, use the appropriate traditional-Chinese form. An empty result may reflect the query or identifier, so do not immediately conclude that the business is fictitious.

The Registry’s search-service introduction explains the BRN/UBI mapping function for earlier company numbers. Resolve the identifier before paying for evidence. A wrong-entity report can look authoritative while answering a question about a different company.

If the purpose is selecting a name for a new entity, keep the search distinct from registering a company in Hong Kong . The incorporation application is a separate process, and a no-match search result does not reserve or approve the proposed name.

Choose the search product that answers the actual question

Choose a product by the fact needed, rather than buying every available document. The August 2026 company-information pamphlet describes the free indexes and paid reports. Use this question-to-product ladder as an editorial purchasing aid.

As checked October 27, 2026, the CR fee schedule lists Company Particulars Search at HKD 22 per company , company-based Directors Index Search at HKD 11 and director-based Directors Index Search at HKD 22. The free company-name, document-index, charges-index and disqualification-index searches are distinct from paid detail products.

If the narrow question is simply which directors are currently recorded, the HKD 11 company-based index may be sufficient. If the task also needs the registered office, capital and other key particulars, the HKD 22 report answers a broader question. This comparison concerns product scope, not a promise that either report alone proves signing authority or ultimate ownership.

Inspect the filing trail and pending-document status

Use the Document Index to find the filing family relevant to the event: incorporation, annual return, officers, capital, office, charges or another subject. Read both the filing date and the document’s internal effective or made-up-to date. Those dates answer different questions and should not be collapsed into one ‘last updated’ label.

The search FAQ explains that documents awaiting registration are shown as pending in the index and their images are not yet available for search. A pending officer notice should therefore be recorded as a live limitation, not as a completed public update. Check again where the decision depends on that change, and request the relevant company-side evidence in the meantime.

A current report or index gives orientation; the filed image supplies the details of a selected record. The public-search product and filing-status distinctions help keep those evidence levels separate. Avoid treating the latest annual return as though it were a real-time record of every later share or officer event.

For charge enquiries, trace the instrument and any subsequent satisfaction or release rather than treating the presence of an old registration as proof that an obligation remains outstanding. For contractual authority, use the director record as one input and obtain the transaction-specific authorization where required.

Pay, download and retain a reproducible evidence pack

Review the exact product, company and delivery format before paying. Image-record charges depend on document category and access mode, and an online view is not the same purchase as a downloadable file or certified copy. Save the receipt and any order reference immediately.

For an unregistered user, retain the Order Number and Download Code shown on the digital receipt. The FAQ states that ordered image records remain in the download area for seven calendar days . This is a retrieval window, not a legal expiry date for the underlying company document. Download and back up the files promptly rather than relying on the browser session.

Create an evidence cover sheet with the company name and BRN, query and search mode, search timestamp, product, receipt, source-document date, retrieved file and unresolved issue. Save the original downloaded record alongside the reviewer’s notes. This makes the conclusion reproducible without pretending that an unannotated screenshot records the whole investigation.

If an image is missing or defective, retain the receipt and the affected reference, then use the Registry’s stated assistance route. Do not repair an official image yourself or replace it with a retyped version while describing it as a Registry document. Choose the certified-copy service where the recipient requires that form of evidence.

Interpret personal-data, ownership and status limits

The new inspection regime limits ordinary public access to full identity numbers and usual residential addresses. Correspondence addresses and partial identifiers should not be treated as incomplete disclosure or used as a reason to guess private information. Specified-person access follows its separate statutory process.

Registered shareholders, directors, bank signers and ultimate controllers are different categories. The SCR is maintained by applicable companies rather than filed as the ordinary public company-search record. A public shareholder field may also depend on the date and type of filed record. Obtain the relevant current company-held and identity evidence where the transaction needs a fuller ownership conclusion.

A company search is not a solvency certificate or tax clearance. It does not prove the counterparty owns the bank account quoted in an email, holds the necessary sector licence or has authority for the proposed transaction. Define those verification tasks separately, especially before releasing money or accepting a change of payment instructions.

Close the company search with a dated, bounded finding

Close the search with a dated finding that identifies the legal entity, products examined, source dates, material results and remaining limitations. For a simple identity check, stop when that narrow question is answered. For a transaction depending on a recent change, keep the item open until the relevant evidence is available.

Recheck close to the decision where a pending filing, status change, director event or charge release could alter the result. Preserve the earlier search rather than overwriting it, so the record shows what was known when each decision was made.