Business registers in EU countries

Lithuania

It is possible to search by the legal person’s code, name or part of its name. This section provides an overview of Lithuania’s register of legal persons.

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Lithuania

History of the national register establishment

When was it founded?

The register of legal persons, which replaced the former register of undertakings and separate registration systems for public organisations and other bodies, entered into operation on 1 January 2004.

The registration of legal persons in Lithuania started in October 1990 at municipal registry services, while public organisations were registered with separate ministries and other institutions.

When was it digitised?

Digitisation of the register of legal persons began in 1990. The register is now fully digitised.

What is the current applicable legislation?

The Civil Code of the Republic of Lithuania, the Law on the register of legal persons, and laws regulating the activities of specific legal forms of legal persons, e.g. the Law on public limited companies, the regulations of the register of legal persons.

Other laws relating to the activities of legal persons, such as the Law on the insolvency of legal persons, etc., also apply.

What information does the business register offer?

Who has access to the register?

The data in the register of legal persons, the documents stored in the register and any other information submitted to the register are public. Any person who has submitted a request, indicating for what purpose and under what legal basis the data will be used, has the right to obtain data from the register of legal persons and copies of documents stored there.

What information does the register hold?

Which data types are stored? (Which entities are entered in the public register? Information on insolvency, financial reports ...)

The legal person’s code; its name; the address of the registered office; the bodies of the legal person: data on members of the legal person’s management bodies, its liquidators or insolvency administrators; data on the persons entitled to enter into transactions on behalf of the legal person; the rule allowing persons to act on behalf of the legal person; the restrictions on the activities of the legal person; the start and end dates of the financial year; the time period of the activities, if this period is limited; the legal person’s legal status (in bankruptcy, in liquidation, being restructured or reorganised); information that the legal person carries out the activity of a provider of a trust or company and administration services, a virtual currency exchange operator, or a deposit virtual currency wallet operator; when a public or private limited company has a single shareholder: data on the company’s shareholder, the date of acquisition of all the shares, the date of transfer of all or part of the company’s shares to other persons; data on members of the supervisory bodies; data on the founder of a branch or representative office of the legal person; the titles of annual financial reports or, in the cases laid down by law, the titles of annual consolidated financial reports, and the dates on which they were signed off and submitted to the register of legal persons, etc.

Which documents are being filed/stored (files, book of documents, statutes, general meetings minutes ...)?

Requests to register data; minutes and decisions of meetings of the participants; minutes and decisions of meetings of the collegiate management bodies; statutes/regulations; instruments of incorporation of branches and representative offices of foreign legal persons; sets of annual financial reports or, in the cases laid down by law, sets of annual consolidated financial reports; asset valuation reports, etc.

How can I perform a search (and what are the available search criteria)?

In person

A search may be carried out in person.

On the website of the register

A search may be carried out on the website of the register.

What are the available search criteria?

It is possible to search by the legal person’s code, name or part of its name.

How can I obtain documents?

Free of charge?

Documents cannot be obtained free of charge.

Upon a fee?

A fee in the amount set by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania is charged to obtain data, information and copies of documents from the register.

How can I obtain an extract from the register, certified copy or transcript of documents?

A certified extract from the register of legal persons may be ordered online via the self-service system, by e-mail, by post or by visiting a customer service department.

A certified copy of a document from the register of legal persons may be ordered by e-mail, by post or by visiting a customer service department. An uncertified copy of a document may be ordered and obtained online via the self-service system.

A fee set by the Government of the Republic of Lithuania is charged for issuing an extract or a copy of a document.

Registration procedure

How can I launch the registration procedure (how to submit applications to the register, certification of documents, type of documents which need to be attached)?

In person

The registration procedure may be started in person.

The following documents must be submitted to register a legal person in the register of legal persons:

  1. an application in the prescribed form to register a legal person;
  2. the instruments of incorporation of the legal person;
  3. other documents prescribed by law.

A notary or the Ministry of Justice checks the veracity of the data submitted to the register’s data processor, the compliance of the instruments of incorporation with regulatory requirements and whether it is possible to register or input the legal person, the branch or representative office, the amended data and instruments of incorporation, and branch or representative office regulations, because the obligations laid down in laws or an instrument of constitution have been fulfilled and the circumstances laid down in laws or instruments of incorporation have arisen.

Online

The most popular legal forms of legal person, such as private limited companies, small partnerships, individual enterprises, public bodies, associations, and charitable and support foundations, can be set up online. These account for around 80% of all legal persons registered in the register of legal persons.

Documents may be submitted electronically directly to the register’s data processor via the Centre of Registers’ customer self-service system, provided that the founder has a qualified electronic signature; documents are drawn up in compliance with approved templates (regulations, statutes, a deed of establishment or a memorandum of incorporation); there can be no intention to use the short-form name of the State (‘Lietuva’) in the legal person’s name; there is electronically signed proof of consent from the owners of the premises for the premises to be used to register the registered office, if the premises do not belong to the founder; the shares of a private limited company are paid by cash contribution; the objectives and areas of activity of an association, a public body or a charitable and support foundation are consistent with the classification of objectives and areas of activity of public legal persons; a charitable and support foundation does not hold endowment capital.

How are submitted applications reviewed?

When examining submitted documents, the register’s data processor determines whether:

  1. the submitted application to register a legal person (changes to the data and documents to be entered in the register, deletion of data) complies with the prescribed form, or all the documents have been submitted;
  2. the time limits referred to in Article 2.46(4) of the Civil Code have not been exceeded;
  3. the data and documents submitted to the register are mutually consistent, clear and not misleading;
  4. the form or content of the documents is not contrary to the law.

The register’s data processor may refuse to register a legal person only if one of the above circumstances is found.

If the application data and instruments of incorporation received have been certified by a notary or the Ministry of Justice, the register’s data processor does not verify the veracity of the data submitted or the compliance of the documents’ content with regulatory requirements.

Legal effects of the registration

Effect of entries on third parties according to Article 17 of Directive (EU) 2017/1132

The data and information in the register of legal persons are considered to be correct as long as they are not contested pursuant to the procedure laid down by laws of the Republic of Lithuania and legal acts of the European Union.

Discrepancies between the register entry and its publication

Publication is based on the certified entries in the register and there being no discrepancies. Notices are generated automatically in the information publication on the basis of the data entered in the register of legal persons.

Who has the responsibility for the accuracy of the records?

The management body of the legal person is responsible for the accuracy of the documents and data submitted and for their timely submission to the register’s data processor, unless otherwise prescribed by law or instruments of incorporation.

Data protection procedures

Procedures relating to the rights of the data subject regarding publishing and storing their personal data

The data, information and documents in the register are public. Any person may access the data, information and documents in the register in accordance with the procedure laid down by laws and the regulations of the register of legal persons. Recipients of the data may use the register’s data only for the purpose, to the extent and in the manner indicated when they received them. Personal data are processed in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2016/679.

Contact information

Data processor of the register of legal persons – the State enterprise, the Centre of Registers.

Tel. +370 5 268 8262

E-mail: info@registrucentras.lt

Useful links

https://www.registrucentras.lt/p/671

https://www.registrucentras.lt/en/

Last update: 07/04/2023

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