The Company Register Is Changing – What Can Businesses Expect from the New Legal Entity Registration System?

The aim: a more unified legal entity register

One of the key objectives of the Legal Entity Registration Act is to create a more unified system for the registration of legal entities.

Under the current framework, business associations and civil and other organisations are registered in separate systems. The new legislation seeks to bring these registers into a more unified framework and to standardise the procedures applicable to registration matters.

The significance of the reform therefore goes beyond a purely technical transformation of the existing company register. The legislative objective is to establish a more modern and transparent system that makes broader use of electronic administration.

The date of entry into force may still change

Under its currently applicable provisions, the Legal Entity Registration Act is scheduled to enter into force on 1 January 2027. In parallel, the regulatory role of the existing legislation governing company registration would fundamentally change.

In September 2026, however, the Ministry of Justice published a draft amendment for public consultation indicating that the introduction of the new system should be preceded by a further professional review of the legislation that has already been adopted but has not yet entered into force.

According to the legislative reasoning accompanying the draft, the establishment of the unified register of legal entities should be reconsidered from both a professional and an IT perspective, with the involvement of the organisations concerned. As the remaining period before the currently scheduled date of entry into force would not provide sufficient time for the necessary review, the draft envisages setting a new date for the legislation to take effect.

Accordingly, although the Legal Entity Registration Act currently continues to specify 1 January 2027, the actual launch date of the new registration system may still be postponed.

The register would operate as an official public register

One of the key elements of the system established by the Legal Entity Registration Act is that the register would operate as an official public register with a presumption of authenticity, maintained by the authority responsible for the registration of legal entities (the “Authority”).

This would represent a significant change in approach compared with the current company court-based registration system.

Courts would not, however, disappear entirely from proceedings relating to legal entities. Certain judicial proceedings concerning legal entities, as well as procedures connected with termination without legal succession, would remain subject to separate rules.

Electronic and automated procedures would play a greater role

One of the fundamental objectives of the new system is to make broader use of electronic administration and information technology.

This does not mean, however, that all registration matters would be decided automatically.

Under the Legal Entity Registration Act, automated decision-making would be available in the cases and subject to the conditions specified by law. For example, provided that there are no grounds for rejecting the application, an application for reservation of a name would be decided by the Authority through automated decision-making.

Where a matter is dealt with under the full procedure, the current wording of the Act provides that, as a general rule, the Authority would have ten working days to decide whether to register the relevant data or reject the application.

Automation may therefore accelerate registration procedures. At the same time, it may become even more important to ensure that the information and documents submitted are legally compliant and properly prepared at the time the application is filed.

The role of legal counsel would remain significant

An important point for businesses is that legal counsel would continue to play a central role under the system envisaged by the Legal Entity Registration Act.

Under Section 28 of the Act, legal representation would, subject to the exceptions specified by law, remain mandatory in registration proceedings initiated upon application.

The new system would therefore not diminish the importance of prior legal review. On the contrary, one of the key prerequisites for the proper functioning of an electronic and partly automated registration system is that the information and documents submitted to the Authority are legally compliant and appropriately prepared.

The rules on public access to registration data would also change

Under the Legal Entity Registration Act, the new register would, as a general rule, continue to provide broad public access to information concerning legal entities.

Unless otherwise provided by law, current and historical registered data, including deleted data, registration documents and published financial statements would be publicly accessible.

At the same time, the Act distinguishes between publicly accessible and non-public data relating to natural persons and sets out the conditions under which non-public data may be accessed.

The regulatory framework therefore seeks to balance the transparency of legal entities with the appropriate protection of personal data contained in the register.

Certain changes could be recorded ex officio

Another practical feature of the more unified registration system is that, in certain cases, changes resulting from other registered data could be recorded without the need to initiate a separate procedure.

Under the current wording of the Legal Entity Registration Act, certain changes may be entered ex officio where the relevant information already follows from existing registration data.

This may reduce the need for separate notification procedures in relation to interconnected changes in registered information.

What does this mean for businesses?

The entry into force of the new legislation would not in itself mean that every existing business association must submit a new application for registration.

For businesses, the practical impact of the new system is likely to become most apparent when they need to initiate a registration procedure – for example, when establishing a new company or changing registered company information.

This may include, among other matters, changes to a company’s registered office, executive officers or ownership structure, as well as significant corporate transactions. It will therefore remain important for businesses to ensure that their registered information is accurate and up to date, that corporate decisions are properly documented and that documents submitted in registration proceedings comply with the applicable legal requirements.

What should businesses pay attention to now?

At the present stage, the most important step for businesses is not to take immediate action in preparation for the new system, but rather to monitor the legislative process.

The general direction of the Legal Entity Registration Act is towards a more unified and digital registration system with greater scope for automated procedures. However, the legislative proposal published in September 2026 indicates that the regulatory framework originally adopted is expected to undergo further professional and IT-related review.

Businesses may therefore wish to follow these developments particularly closely if they are planning the establishment of a new company, changes in ownership or management, a transformation, merger, demerger or another significant corporate transaction in the coming period.

The general direction of the new legal entity registration system has already taken shape, but the final regulatory framework and the actual date of its introduction may still change. Legislative developments in the coming period will therefore be relevant both for business associations and their legal advisers.

This article reflects the legislative and regulatory status known as of 5 October 2026. It is intended for general information purposes only and does not constitute legal advice in any individual matter.