Since the end of 2019, it has been possible to access French companies' legal information freely and free of charge, a principle that was voted in 5 years earlier as part of the August 6, 2015 law for growth, activity and equal economic opportunity known as the "Macron Law".
Free access to information
Whereas in the past, commercial court clerks had exclusive access to company information, which they resold on the Infogreffe - Registre du commerce et des sociétés website, this information is now freely available.
Indeed, consultation of company balance sheets, minutes of general meetings, identities of partners and beneficial owners, or trademark registrations is gradually becoming accessible to all. The August 6, 2015 law for growth, activity and equal economic opportunity has largely contributed to this transparency movement, its aim being to harness company data to increase business volume.
Access to this information is now offered by several legal services companies that have obtained a license from the French National Institute of Intellectual Property (INPI). These include Societe.ninja, Pappers and LegalTile. These data can also be consulted free of charge on the Data INPI platform. By creating a free account, you can search for a company by name, SIREN number or name of director. Full copies of the various deeds filed with the registry and the published balance sheets of the companies concerned can be downloaded in PDF format.
The implementation of the ProConnect system provided for in the PACTE law of May 22, 2019 will enable the addition of tens of thousands of items of information. In this regard, a decree relating to the addition of information to the data directory of the national identification system for natural and legal persons and their establishments (SIREN) sets out new provisions applicable from January 1, 2022. The aim is for individuals and legal entities to provide additional information to facilitate communication with the authorities.
Confidentiality of annual financial statements: an option for certain companies
Although companies are obliged to publish their information, in certain contexts they may wish to keep their accounts confidential.
Several factors are likely to justify this choice:
- the company's poor economic health,
- the development of a financial strategy during the first years of existence,
- the desire not to give the competition anything to evaluate the market.
Not making your accounts public doesn't mean that no one has access to them. Indeed, the Banque de France, the judicial authorities and the tax authorities will always have a right of inspection. What's more, not all companies can make the publication of their accounts confidential. This option is only available to companies that meet certain criteria, depending on their size.
Free access to corporate legal information has made significant progress in recent years, even though more and more companies are requesting partial or total confidentiality of their accounts.