CEIDG — the Central Register of Economic Activity — records every sole trader and civil-law partnership operating in Poland. Before a foreign buyer or lender treats a Polish asset as security, the register answers three threshold questions: whether the business behind the asset is still active, what name and identifier it trades under, and whether any suspension or deletion has been recorded. Those answers are free. What requires professional work is assembling them alongside the pledge registers, the land register, the insolvency file, and the VAT list into a single collateral picture.
- What CEIDG shows
- Active or suspended status, registered business name, NIP, REGON, registered address, declared PKD codes, and dates of entry, suspension, and deletion. Source: CEIDG (ceidg.gov.pl) · verified 2026-08-04
- Cost of access
- Free of charge, no account required, no declaration of legitimate interest. Source: CEIDG (ceidg.gov.pl) · verified 2026-08-04
- Pledge registers
- Two separate systems apply: Rejestr Zastawów (Ministry of Justice) and Rejestr Zastawów Skarbowych (Ministry of Finance). Both must be checked. Certified extracts cost 15–50 PLN per query. Source: Centralna Informacja / e-Urząd Skarbowy · verified 2026-08-12
- What CEIDG does not show
- Pledges over business assets, insolvency proceedings, VAT status, beneficial owner, or the land register number for any real property used as collateral.
CEIDG is a public register and is free of charge. What the report fee covers is the removed path: locating the correct entry by NIP or REGON, reading the Polish-language output, cross-referencing it with the pledge registers and insolvency file, and delivering a single English-language collateral summary before any commitment is made.
What the collateral picture requires beyond CEIDG
A sole trader or civil-law partnership in Poland can encumber its assets in two legally distinct ways. Registered pledges under the Civil Code sit in Rejestr Zastawów, held by the Ministry of Justice. Tax pledges arising from unpaid duties sit in Rejestr Zastawów Skarbowych, held by the Ministry of Finance. Neither register is visible from CEIDG. A clean CEIDG entry says nothing about either.
For real property, the path runs through the land and mortgage register (Elektroniczna Księga Wieczysta). That register is searchable only by KW number, not by owner name. The KW number must first be obtained from the land registry records (ewidencja gruntów i budynków). This two-step dependency means the collateral chain cannot be verified from a single portal.
| Register | What it covers | Access | Cost | Key limitation |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| CEIDG | Business status, name, NIP, REGON, address | Free, no login | None | No pledges, no insolvency, no property |
| Rejestr Zastawów (MoJ) | Registered pledges over movable assets and rights | Paid extracts | DW-1 (subject): 20 PLN · DW-2 (object): 20 PLN · DW-4 (certified copy): 15 PLN | Separate from tax pledges; both systems required |
| Rejestr Zastawów Skarbowych (MoF) | Tax pledges arising from unpaid public duties | Free search; certified statement paid | Wypis/zaświadczenie: 50 PLN via e-Urząd Skarbowy | Separate from civil pledges; both systems required |
| EKW (land register) | Title, mortgages, encumbrances on real property | Free, but KW number required | None for online view | No name search; KW number obtained from ewidencja gruntów |
| KRZ (insolvency register) | Bankruptcy and restructuring proceedings from December 2021 | Free, no login | None | Pre-December 2021 proceedings not included |
| Biała lista (VAT whitelist) | VAT status, declared bank accounts, history of changes | Free, no login | None | Historical checks possible; API rate-limited |
| CRBR (beneficial ownership) | Ultimate beneficial owner chain | Free, no login | None | Self-reported; accuracy depends on filing compliance |
The insolvency register: what the date of December 2021 means
KRZ (Krajowy Rejestr Zadłużonych, krz.ms.gov.pl) replaced the former Rejestr Dłużników Niewypłacalnych on 1 December 2021. It is public, free, and requires no login. A search by NIP, KRS, REGON, or PESEL returns any bankruptcy or restructuring proceeding opened from that date.
Proceedings opened before 1 December 2021 are not in KRZ. For the period before that date, the relevant source is Monitor Sądowy i Gospodarczy (MSiG), searchable at wyszukiwarka-msig.ms.gov.pl. MSiG is free and covers announcements from 1996. From December 2021, bankruptcy and restructuring notices migrated to KRZ. A clean result in KRZ alone does not exclude an older proceeding.
VAT whitelist: the bank account argument
The Biała lista (podatki.gov.pl) is maintained by the Head of the National Revenue Administration. It shows VAT registration status, all bank accounts declared to the tax authority, and the dates and reasons for any exclusion, suspension, or reinstatement. Historical checks are possible: the status on any past date can be retrieved.
The bank account dimension is directly relevant to collateral. A payment made to an account not on the whitelist triggers joint and several VAT liability for the payer. This makes the whitelist a practical prerequisite before any transfer of funds tied to a Polish asset.
Where the sources disagree
The declared address in CEIDG is the address the trader registered. It need not match the address in the land register, the VAT whitelist, or the filed financial statements. Discrepancies between these four sources are common and are themselves a result worth recording before any transaction closes.
CRBR contains the beneficial owner chain as self-reported by the entity. Where that chain conflicts with the KRS or CEIDG filing — for instance, different dates of acquisition or different percentage stakes — the conflict is documented in the report. No register resolves the conflict automatically.
The limit of what the sources allow
CEIDG shows that a business exists and is active. It does not show what encumbers the assets of that business. The pledge registers show registered encumbrances as of the date of the query; they do not show informal arrangements, retention-of-title clauses in supply contracts, or undisclosed security interests. The land register shows encumbrances on a specific parcel identified by KW number; it does not show whether the trader has an equitable interest in a parcel registered in another name.
KRZ covers insolvency from December 2021 forward. MSiG covers announcements from 1996, but the search is document-level, not structured data. A proceeding opened, closed, and not announced in either register — for instance, a dismissed petition — may leave no public trace. Absence of a record is not proof of absence of a proceeding.
CRBR is self-reported. Where the declared beneficial owner holds through a non-Polish entity, verification of that entity's ownership structure requires sources outside the Polish register system. The report states the chain as declared and identifies the point at which it cannot be independently verified.
What is included at each tier
| Tier | Price | What is included | Not included |
|---|---|---|---|
| Signal | €290 | CEIDG status check (active / suspended / deleted) · NIP and REGON confirmed · Registered address · KRZ insolvency search · MSiG announcement search · VAT whitelist status and declared accounts · English-language summary | Pledge registers (civil and tax) · Land register · CRBR beneficial owner chain · Financial statements · Discrepancy analysis across sources |
| Standard | €470 | Everything in Signal · Rejestr Zastawów query (DW-1 and DW-2 extracts) · Rejestr Zastawów Skarbowych query · KW number identification via ewidencja gruntów · EKW land register review · CRBR beneficial owner chain · Discrepancy table across all sources | Filed financial statements · Verification of non-Polish entities in the ownership chain · On-site asset inspection · Legal qualification of findings |
| Extended | €960 | Everything in Standard · Repozytorium Dokumentów Finansowych: three years of filed statements · Cross-check of declared accounts against financial statement data · Identification of discrepancies between CRBR and KRS or CEIDG filings · Written collateral summary with source citations in English · Analyst availability for one follow-up call | Legal advice or legal qualification of findings · Verification of foreign entities beyond Polish public registers · Court file review · Representation in any proceeding |
Register fees (DW-1, DW-2, DW-4, wypis) are disbursed at cost and itemised in the invoice. They are not included in the tier price above.
Frequently asked questions
Does a clean CEIDG entry mean the business has no debts?
No. CEIDG records registration status, not financial obligations. Pledges, tax arrears, and court judgments are held in separate registers. A clean CEIDG entry confirms only that the entry has not been deleted or suspended.
Can a foreign lender search Polish registers directly?
The public registers — CEIDG, KRZ, Biała lista, CRBR — are accessible without registration and without a Polish identifier. The pledge registers require a specific query format and return Polish-language output. EKW requires the KW number, which must be sourced separately. The practical barrier is not legal access but the sequence of steps and the language of the output.
What does the report deliver that the registers do not?
The registers deliver raw records in Polish. The report delivers a consolidated English-language collateral summary: what each register shows, where records are absent, and where records across sources conflict. It identifies the ceiling of what the sources allow before any commitment is made.
How long does the report take?
Signal tier: two to three business days. Standard and Extended tiers: four to six business days. Timing depends on the availability of certified extracts from the pledge registers.
Is the report a legal opinion?
No. The report is a factual compilation from official registers and public sources. It contains no legal qualification of the findings. For legal advice on a specific transaction, contact info@kordeckipartners.com.
Disclaimer: This report is a factual compilation from official registers and public sources. It is provided for informational purposes only, does not constitute legal advice, and contains no legal qualification of the facts established. KORDECKI & Partners assumes no liability for actions taken or not taken based on this material. For advice regarding your particular situation, please contact info@kordeckipartners.com.