The business register in Australia is not a single database. Companies are registered federally by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), which maintains the companies and organisations register and the national business names register at asic.gov.au. Tax and identity registration sits with the Australian Business Register (ABR), published through ABN Lookup, while incorporated associations, co-operatives and limited partnerships are registered by the states and territories. Core company data are free to search, and fuller information is obtained through purchased extracts.

The company registry in Australia

ASIC is the federal registrar of companies. A company comes into existence on registration by ASIC under the Corporations Act 2001, which issues an Australian Company Number (ACN) and a certificate of registration. ASIC’s company and organisation register covers Australian companies, registered Australian bodies, foreign companies registered in Australia and registered managed investment schemes, and is searchable by name, ACN, ARBN or ARSN.

Two developments define the current state of the register. First, the Modernising Business Registers program, which would have consolidated more than thirty registers under a single Commonwealth Registrar, was discontinued in 2023; ASIC remains responsible for the company registers and is delivering a stabilisation and uplift programme, under which a new public beta company search was released in 2026, with purchasable search products, new interfaces and person search to follow. The Treasury Laws Amendment (Business Registries Stabilisation and Uplift) Act 2026 gave effect to this, including new ASIC powers over deregistration, correction of information and restricted access to sensitive information. Second, the director identification number regime remains fully in force: every director must obtain a unique fifteen-digit director ID before appointment. Director IDs are administered by the Australian Business Registry Services within the Australian Taxation Office, while ASIC enforces the obligation and has prosecuted directors who failed to obtain one. From 1 July 2027 companies must provide director IDs to ASIC through annual reviews and change-of-officeholder notifications.

The other layers

The Australian Business Register, administered by the Australian Taxation Office, issues the Australian Business Number (ABN) to any entity carrying on an enterprise and publishes core data through ABN Lookup. Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporations are registered separately by the Office of the Registrar of Indigenous Corporations (ORIC) under the Corporations (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) Act 2006, receiving an Indigenous Corporation Number. Incorporated associations, co-operatives, limited partnerships and incorporated limited partnerships are registered by state and territory regulators such as NSW Fair Trading, Consumer Affairs Victoria, Consumer and Business Services in South Australia and Access Canberra.

Where sole traders appear

Australia has no register of sole traders as such. A sole trader is not a company, receives no ACN and has no entry on the company register. A sole trader appears on the Australian Business Register as an individual ABN holder, and on ASIC’s business names register if trading under a name other than their own personal name. Registering a business name creates no legal entity and confers no ownership of the name.

Legal forms that can be registered in Australia

Australian business structures fall into three groups: unincorporated structures, the six company types set out in section 112 of the Corporations Act 2001, and entities incorporated under other Commonwealth or state legislation.

  • Sole trader — the simplest structure; the individual is legally responsible for all aspects of the business and all personal assets are at risk. Registered through an ABN and, where applicable, a business name.
  • Partnership (general) — two or more people carrying on business together under state and territory Partnership Acts; all partners share unlimited liability for partnership debts.
  • Limited partnership — at least one general partner with unlimited liability and at least one limited partner whose liability is capped at the agreed contribution; registered by the state or territory.
  • Incorporated limited partnership — a body corporate registered by the state or territory, used principally for venture capital; it may additionally be registered federally as a venture capital limited partnership or early stage venture capital limited partnership.
  • Trust — a trustee holds and operates the business for the benefit of beneficiaries; there is no public trust register, and the trustee, often a company, bears legal responsibility.
  • Proprietary company limited by shares (Pty Ltd) — the most common vehicle; a member is liable only up to the amount unpaid on their shares. Proprietary companies are classified as small or large by thresholds of consolidated revenue, gross assets and employee numbers.
  • Unlimited proprietary company with share capital — members may be liable for all the company’s debts; rare, used in some professional and investment structures.
  • Public company limited by shares (Ltd) — liability limited to the unpaid amount on shares; used by listed and large public companies.
  • Company limited by guarantee — members undertake to contribute a limited amount on winding up; the standard structure for not-for-profits and registered charities.
  • Unlimited public company with share capital — members may be liable for all company debts; rare.
  • No liability company (NL) — available only for mining purposes, with a constitution restricted to mining; members are not liable for calls on partly paid shares.
  • Registered Australian body — a body incorporated under state law, such as an incorporated association, that registers with ASIC to carry on business outside its home jurisdiction; it receives an Australian Registered Body Number (ARBN).
  • Foreign company registered in Australia — a company incorporated abroad must register with ASIC before carrying on business in Australia, receives an ARBN and must appoint an Australian-resident local agent authorised to accept service.
  • Incorporated association — incorporated by a state or territory registrar; a separate legal entity with limited liability for members, but able to operate only within its own jurisdiction unless it also registers with ASIC as a registered Australian body.
  • Co-operative — a member-owned entity under the Co-operatives National Law and state legislation, requiring a minimum number of members; members have no direct responsibility for the co-operative’s debts.
  • Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporation — a body corporate registered by ORIC under the CATSI Act, with tailored governance and reporting rules.
  • Registered managed investment scheme — registered by ASIC under Chapter 5C of the Corporations Act and identified by an Australian Registered Scheme Number (ARSN).

A joint venture, by contrast, is a contractual arrangement rather than a registrable legal form, and does not appear on any register in its own right.

Information available from the Australian business registers

ASIC’s free company and organisation search returns the entity name and type, its ABN and ACN, ARBN or ARSN, the registration date, the next review date, the registered office suburb, state and postcode, the entity’s status and the list of documents lodged. The free business names search returns the name holder, the holder’s ABN, the address for service, the principal place of business, the registration date, the next renewal date and the current status; for individual holders the principal place of business is shown only as suburb, state and postcode.

ABN Lookup, the public interface to the Australian Business Register, is free and shows the ABN itself, the entity’s legal name and type, ABN status with effective dates, GST registration status, the main business location by state and postcode, associated ACN, ARBN or ARSN, registered business names, historical trading names, and deductible gift recipient endorsements and charity tax concession status.

Fuller company information is available through purchased extracts rather than the free search: full registered office and principal place of business addresses, current and former officeholders including directors, secretaries, appointed auditors and external administrators, share structure, members and shareholders of proprietary companies, ultimate holding companies, external administration details, registered charges, financial reports lodged and the full document lodgement history.

What is restricted

Several categories are not publicly available. Director identification numbers are not published; when the register begins reflecting director IDs it will show only whether a company has provided them, not the numbers themselves. Residential addresses of company officeholders were removed from company extracts purchased through the ASIC website in February 2026 as a privacy and personal-safety measure, with continuing access for law enforcement, government agencies and those who need addresses for regulatory compliance; separately, a director whose safety would be at risk may apply to suppress their residential address and substitute an alternative address for service. Financial reports of small proprietary companies are generally not lodged and therefore do not appear on the register at all, except where the company is foreign-controlled, has significant crowd-sourced funding shareholders or is directed by ASIC to report. Finally, Australia has no public beneficial ownership register for unlisted companies: ASIC’s register shows legal members rather than ultimate beneficial owners. The Government announced in October 2025 that it would proceed directly to a public Commonwealth-operated beneficial ownership register for unlisted companies, with detailed policy work beginning in 2027, while a separate ASIC consultation in 2026 proposed enhanced beneficial ownership disclosure for listed entities.

Documents that can be obtained from the register

  • Current company extract — the organisation’s information as at the time of purchase, including current addresses, current officeholders, members and share structure, status and registration details, and the document lodgement index. Used for verifying who can bind a company, for onboarding, know-your-customer checks and credit assessment.
  • Current and historical company extract — all publicly available information on the register, adding former addresses, former officeholders and former members, historical share structure, previous ultimate holding companies, external administration history, registered charges and annual return records. Used for due diligence, insolvency and litigation work and for tracing directorship histories.
  • Roles and relationship extract — the links between a person or entity and the organisations with which they are associated; used for relationship mapping and director-network analysis.
  • Australian registered body, foreign company and managed investment scheme extracts — current and historical versions of the same information for entities holding an ARBN or ARSN.
  • Business name extracts — current and current-and-historical versions showing the registration details, holder, ABN, address for service, status and renewal date, with prior holders and prior details in the historical version. Used to establish who trades under a given name and for how long.
  • Business name holder extracts — all business names held by a specified person or organisation.
  • Personal name extracts — current and historical records of an individual’s roles across ASIC-registered entities, available as paper products.
  • Certificate of registration of a company — the certificate evidencing that a company was registered and giving its registration details. It is the certificate available online and is used to prove corporate existence when opening bank accounts, contracting and filing abroad.
  • Certificates obtained by application — ASIC also issues certificates as to the holding of office by a director, secretary or principal executive officer, the entry or details of a registered charge, the registration of a reduction of capital, that no corporation was registered under a nominated name in a stated period, and other register information. Foreign counterparties sometimes ask for a certificate of good standing; ASIC does not issue a document under that name, and the certificate of registration together with a current extract showing registered status is used instead.
  • ASIC registered documents — copies of documents lodged with ASIC, such as the application for registration, notifications of changes to company details, notifications of resolutions affecting share capital, financial statements and reports, and the registration and local agent documents of foreign companies. Certified copies are available for evidentiary use.
  • Financial reports — the annual financial reports lodged by companies required to report, available as filed and, in some cases, in structured data format.
  • Regulatory extracts — disqualified person extracts, banned representative extracts and extracts from ASIC’s professional registers of financial services and credit licensees, liquidators and auditors.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the business register in Australia?

The company register is maintained by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC), which also runs the national business names register. Tax and identity data sit on the Australian Business Register, published through ABN Lookup.

Is the ASIC company register free to search?

Basic company data are free, including the name, ACN and ABN, entity type, registration date, status, registered office locality and the list of documents lodged. Officeholders, shareholders and share structure are obtained through purchased extracts.

Do sole traders appear on the Australian company register?

No. Sole traders have no ACN and no entry on the company register. They appear on ABN Lookup as individual ABN holders and, if they trade under a different name, on the business names register.

What is a director ID and is it public?

A director identification number is a unique fifteen-digit identifier that every director must obtain before appointment. It is administered by the Australian Business Registry Services and enforced by ASIC, and the number itself is not published on the register.

Can I find the beneficial owner of an Australian company?

Not currently for unlisted companies. Extracts show legal members rather than ultimate beneficial owners, and a public Commonwealth beneficial ownership register for unlisted companies is at the policy development stage.

Are Australian companies’ financial statements public?

Only where the company is required to lodge them. Large proprietary companies, public companies and certain other entities lodge financial reports with ASIC, which can then be purchased; small proprietary companies generally do not lodge at all.

Sources

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