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CIPC Company Codes, Types & Status: The Complete Guide

? 8 min read Last verified May 2026 Covers registration codes, status codes, annual returns & beneficial ownership

This article is your single reference for everything on a CIPC company record that matters to Trade Shield. It covers the entity type codes embedded in every registration number, the status codes that tell you whether a company is legally active or not, the annual return fee structure, and the Beneficial Ownership requirement that has been mandatory since July 2024.

In this article

1. How a registration number is built	2. Entity type codes (the last two digits)
3. Old regional registration numbers	4. Company status codes
5. Annual returns & fee structure	6. Beneficial ownership declaration
7. Quick reference table	8. Common errors in source documents

How a Registration Number is Built

Every South African company registration number follows the format: YYYY / NNNNNN / NN

YYYY — Year of incorporation (e.g. 2018)
NNNNNN — Unique six-digit sequential number allocated in that year
NN — Entity type code (see Section 2)

Example: 2000/000001/07 = the first private company registered in the year 2000.

REGISTRATION NUMBER ANATOMY

2018

Year incorporated

123456

Unique number

07

Entity type ▲

The last two digits tell you exactly what type of entity you are dealing with

ⓘ Tip: The last two digits of a customer's registration number instantly tell you their entity type — which affects your KYC requirements, signing authority checks, and credit appetite before you even open Trade Shield.

Entity Type Codes (Last Two Digits)

Code	Entity Type	What it means in practice
06	Public Company (Ltd)	Can offer shares to the public. Subject to stricter governance, mandatory auditing, and enhanced public disclosure requirements under the Companies Act.
07	Private Company (Pty Ltd)	The most common entity in South Africa. Shares are not offered to the public. Minimum 1 director, no upper shareholder limit (non-employee shareholders capped at 50). Ideal for SMEs and growing businesses.
08	Non-Profit Company (NPC) Formerly "Article 21"	Incorporated for a public benefit, cultural, social, or charitable purpose. Income and surpluses are reinvested — no profit distributions to members. Requires minimum 3 directors. Annual Return fee is R30.
09	Company Limited by Guarantee	Members guarantee a fixed amount in the event of winding up. Rare in practice — typically used for associations, clubs, and similar organisations.
10	External Company	A foreign company registered to conduct business in South Africa. Must maintain a registered local office and a local representative. Subject to South African Companies Act compliance obligations.
21	Personal Liability Company (Inc)	Used by professional associations — attorneys, accountants, engineers, doctors. The company name must end in "Incorporated". Past and present directors are jointly and severally liable for debts incurred during their tenure. Consult the relevant professional regulatory body before registering.
22	Unlimited Company	Members have unlimited personal liability for company debts. Extremely rare in practice in South Africa.
23	Close Corporation (CC)	A legacy entity type — no new CCs may be registered since the Companies Act 71 of 2008 came into effect. Existing CCs remain valid and continue to operate under the Close Corporations Act 69 of 1984. Very common in your customer base for older businesses.
24	Primary Co-operative	The base level of co-operative — serves members directly. Governed by the Co-operatives Act 14 of 2005. Common in agricultural, retail, and financial services sectors.
25	Secondary Co-operative	A co-operative whose members are other co-operatives (minimum two primary co-ops). Provides services to its member co-operatives.
26	Tertiary Co-operative	The apex level — whose members are secondary co-operatives. Provides support at a national or sectoral level.
30	State Owned Company (SOC Ltd)	A company where the state holds a majority interest. Subject to additional public accountability and reporting requirements (e.g. Eskom, Transnet, PRASA). Enhanced governance requirements apply.
31	Statutory Body	An entity created by a specific Act of Parliament (e.g. CIPC itself, SARS, FSCA). Governed by its own enabling legislation rather than the Companies Act.

⚠ Two Common Source Document Errors — Corrected Here

Some older internal documents (including a previously circulated Trade Shield reference sheet) list "12 - INC" — this is incorrect. There is no active CIPC entity type under code 12. The correct code for a Personal Liability Company (Inc) is 21. The same documents also refer to code 08 as "Article 21" — this is the old terminology from the Companies Act 61 of 1973. Under the current Companies Act 71 of 2008, these entities are Non-Profit Companies (NPC).

Old Regional Registration Numbers

Before CIPC centralised the registration system in 2002, South Africa used a regional format where registration numbers included an alphabetical prefix indicating the province or region where the company was registered. You will encounter these on older customer records.

Prefix	Region
CK	Close Corporation (national prefix, still used for legacy CCs)
K	KwaZulu-Natal
T	Transvaal (now Gauteng)
E	Eastern Cape
W	Western Cape
M	Northern Cape

All companies registered from 2002 onward follow the standard YYYY/NNNNNN/NN format. Companies that registered before 2002 retained their original regional prefix numbers — these remain valid and will still appear on the CIPC eServices portal.

ⓘ Tip: If a customer's registration number starts with a letter rather than a year, it is a pre-2002 entity. It may still be fully active — verify its current status via the CIPC eServices portal as normal.

Company Status Codes

When Trade Shield performs a CIPC lookup, the result includes a status code reflecting the company's current legal standing. Below are all statuses you may encounter.

● In BusinessRisk: Low

The company is currently registered and in good standing. It has met its annual return and compliance obligations. Onboarding and credit assessments can proceed normally.

Trade Shield action: Proceed. Always verify the last Annual Return filing date and confirm Beneficial Ownership is current.

● In Deregistration Process / AR Deregistration ProcessRisk: High

CIPC has initiated deregistration, typically because the company failed to file Annual Returns for two or more consecutive years. The entity has been notified via Government Gazette and can still remedy the situation by filing outstanding returns before final deregistration.

Trade Shield action: Pause new credit. Escalate to compliance team. Do not approve new facilities until status resolves to "In Business".

● Deregistered / AR Final DeregisteredRisk: Critical

The company has been finally and permanently removed from the CIPC register. It no longer has legal standing. Any contracts entered into after deregistration are invalid. Directors may face personal liability for debts incurred.

Trade Shield action: Do not extend credit or onboard. If an existing customer, escalate to legal immediately. Reinstatement (via form CoR40.5) is required before any dealings can resume.

● In LiquidationRisk: Critical

A court has placed the company into liquidation. A court-appointed liquidator is realising assets to settle creditor debts. Can be voluntary (solvent) or compulsory (court-ordered insolvency). The company still exists legally but is not trading in the ordinary course.

Trade Shield action: Halt all new credit. Lodge any outstanding claim with the liquidator. Contact legal team urgently to confirm security position and creditor ranking.

● Voluntary LiquidationRisk: Critical

The company's shareholders have passed a special resolution to wind up its affairs voluntarily. This is filed with CIPC. Assets are distributed to creditors and shareholders in order of priority. The company is still solvent at the time of resolution.

Trade Shield action: Same as In Liquidation. Halt all facilities and lodge any claims. The voluntary nature does not change your exposure as a creditor.

● Under Business RescueRisk: High

A Business Rescue Practitioner (BRP) has been appointed under Chapter 6 of the Companies Act 71 of 2008. A moratorium (legal freeze) is in place on all legal proceedings and debt enforcement. The BRP develops a rescue plan to rehabilitate the company or achieve a better outcome than immediate liquidation.

Trade Shield action: Suspend all collection actions. New supply only if part of an approved rescue plan. Attend creditor meetings and monitor BRP communications. Business rescue can resolve positively — review the status regularly.

● In Re-instatement ProcessRisk: High

A previously deregistered company has applied for reinstatement via form CoR40.5. Requires proof of economic activity at time of deregistration, payment of all outstanding Annual Return fees, and filing of Beneficial Ownership declarations. CIPC processing times for reinstatement can be lengthy.

Trade Shield action: Treat as deregistered until status changes back to "In Business". Monitor CIPC eServices portal for updates.

● AR RestorationRisk: High — Review

Specifically refers to the restoration of a company that was deregistered due to Annual Returns non-compliance (as distinct from other deregistration reasons). The company has submitted all outstanding ARs and paid the associated fees. The CIPC is processing the restoration.

Trade Shield action: Treat as deregistered until fully restored and confirmed as "In Business" on the CIPC register.

● ConvertedRisk: Review

The entity has been converted from one type to another — most commonly a Close Corporation (CC/23) converting to a Private Company (Pty Ltd/07). The original registration number is closed and a new one is issued. Often done to allow business expansion and attract investors.

Trade Shield action: Update your records with the new registration number. Re-run a CIPC lookup on the new number to confirm current status and directors before continuing any credit relationship.

Annual Returns & Fee Structure (2025/2026)

Every company and close corporation must file an Annual Return (AR) with CIPC every year, within 30 business days of the company's anniversary (incorporation) date. This is not a tax return — it goes to CIPC, not SARS. Even dormant or non-trading companies must file.

Fees are based on entity type and annual turnover:

Entity Type	Turnover Bracket	Standard Fee	Late Penalty
Private Company (Pty Ltd)	R0 — R1 million	R100	R150
	R1m — R10 million	R450	R600
	R10m — R25 million	R2,000	R2,500
	Above R25 million	R3,000	R4,000
Close Corporation (CC)	R0 — R50 million	R100	R250
Close Corporation (CC)	Above R50 million	R4,000	R4,150
Non-Profit Company (NPC)	All turnover	R30	Varies

⚠ Note: Late penalties accumulate daily from the day after the 30-business-day window closes. Non-compliance results in: (1) a non-compliance flag on the CIPC register visible to banks and suppliers; (2) an administrative lock-out blocking all other CIPC filings (director changes, name changes); and (3) eventual referral for deregistration after two consecutive missed years. Even a dormant company with R0 turnover must file — it is treated as the lowest fee band.

Beneficial Ownership Declaration — Mandatory Since July 2024

As of 1 July 2024, the CIPC strictly enforces the filing of a Beneficial Ownership (BO) Declaration as a prerequisite to submitting any Annual Return. A hard-stop has been implemented — if the BO has not been filed for the current calendar year, the Annual Return submission is blocked entirely.

This requirement was introduced under the General Laws (Anti-Money Laundering and Combating Terrorism Financing) Amendment Act 22 of 2022, which amended the Companies Act 71 of 2008, to support South Africa's commitments to the Financial Action Task Force (FATF). South Africa has been on the FATF grey list since February 2023.

Who must be disclosed? Any natural person who directly or indirectly:

Holds more than 5% beneficial ownership of shares or voting rights, or
Has effective control over the company, regardless of whether they appear in official records

What happens if a company fails to file BO?

Annual Return submission is blocked (hard stop since 1 July 2024)
Cannot perform any transactions with CIPC
CIPC may issue a compliance notice and/or court-sanctioned administrative fine
Entity is referred for deregistration

What it means for Trade Shield: When reviewing a customer's CIPC status, a company that is blocked from filing Annual Returns (due to outstanding BO) is at immediate risk of entering the deregistration process. This should be treated as a compliance red flag during onboarding and periodic reviews.

ⓘ Tip: BO filing is free — CIPC does not charge for submitting the Beneficial Ownership declaration. If a customer says they cannot afford to file BO, that is not a valid reason. The obstacle is usually administrative (locating all UBO details) rather than financial.

Status Codes Quick Reference

CIPC Status	Risk Level	Trade Shield Action
In Business	● Low	Proceed. Verify last AR date and BO filing.
In Deregistration / AR Deregistration	● High	Pause new credit. Escalate to compliance.
Deregistered / AR Final Deregistered	● Critical	Do not onboard or extend credit. Legal escalation required.
In Liquidation	● Critical	Halt all facilities. Lodge claim with liquidator.
Voluntary Liquidation	● Critical	Halt all facilities. Lodge claims in order of creditor priority.
Under Business Rescue	● High	Suspend collections. Monitor BRP plan.
In Re-instatement / AR Restoration	● High	Treat as deregistered until confirmed "In Business".
Converted	● Review	Update records. Re-run CIPC lookup on new registration number.

Common Errors in Source Documents

What the old document says	What it should say	Why
12 - INC	21 - Personal Liability Company (Inc)	Code 12 does not exist as an active CIPC entity type. The correct code for Inc is 21.
08 - Article 21	08 - Non-Profit Company (NPC)	"Article 21" is the old name under the Companies Act 61 of 1973. The current Companies Act 71 of 2008 calls these Non-Profit Companies.

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