CEIDG (Centralna Ewidencja i Informacja o Działalności Gospodarczej) is Poland’s central register of sole traders. If you register a sole proprietorship (JDG, jednoosobowa działalność gospodarcza) in Poland, your data lands in this register automatically. Below: how registration works in 2026, what data is public, how to suspend or close a business, and how to check a business partner through CEIDG.

What CEIDG is

CEIDG is the register for individuals running a business as a sole trader (działalność gospodarcza), and also for partners in a simple civil-law partnership (spółka cywilna). When you register as a sole trader in Poland, you’re automatically entered into CEIDG. There’s no separate registration step: everything happens through one form, CEIDG-1, submitted via the biznes.gov.pl portal.

For individual entrepreneurs, CEIDG plays the same role that KRS plays for legal entities such as an Sp. z o.o. Comparable registers elsewhere include the UK’s Companies House sole-trader HMRC records, or the US state-level DBA registries. CEIDG is simply Poland’s single national equivalent, and unlike some of those, access to it is free.

CEIDG operates under the Act of March 6, 2018 on the Central Register and Information on Economic Activity and the Enterprise Information Point (original text: Dz.U. 2018 poz. 647, as amended: the 2026 consolidated text is published as Dz.U. z 2026 r. poz. 30). The register is run by the minister competent for the economy, currently the Ministerstwo Rozwoju i Technologii (Ministry of Development and Technology) as of 2026.

CEIDG has been fully operational since July 1, 2011. Before that, registering a sole trader meant handling formalities at your local city or gmina office using the EDG-1 form.

How to register a sole trader through CEIDG in 2026

Registering via CEIDG-1:
– free of charge: no state fee for submitting the form;
– online at biznes.gov.pl, verifying your identity with a Trusted Profile (profil zaufany), a qualified electronic signature (podpis kwalifikowany), or an e-dowód (e-ID);
– entered into the CEIDG register the same day: usually within a few hours if the data is correct; if a NIP is issued for the first time, that can take up to 3 business days;
– REGON and NIP are assigned automatically when you file online.
CEIDG registration on a phoneCEIDG registration on a phone

For foreigners, the easiest way to verify identity is a Trusted Profile, provided you already hold a Polish PESEL number. Through the end of 2026, a paper CEIDG-1 filed in person at a city/gmina office is still formally accepted, but it’s slower and not recommended.

The same CEIDG-1 form (and its attachments) lets you:

  • register a sole proprietorship (działalność gospodarcza);
  • update your data, including your PKD business activity codes;
  • request a suspension of activity (zawieszenie);
  • request a resumption of activity (wznowienie);
  • close the business (removal from the register).

Additional attachments available on the portal: CEIDG-MW (an extra place of business), CEIDG-RB (an additional business bank account), CEIDG-POPR (correcting a mistake in your data), and CEIDG-PN (appointing a proxy, pełnomocnik, to act on your behalf).

CEIDG electronisation, what changes in 2026-2028

The government is moving CEIDG fully online in stages:

  • from November 1, 2026: registering a new business will only be possible electronically (paper registration forms will no longer be accepted);
  • suspension, resumption and closure requests can still be filed on paper for now;
  • full electronisation of every CEIDG application type, including suspension, resumption and closure, is planned for November 1, 2028.

Sources (money.pl, infakt.pl, europim.pl) differ slightly on the intermediate rollout dates for each application type. The mObywatel app is also expected to become an additional identity-verification channel for filing applications, alongside the Trusted Profile.

What data is public in a CEIDG entry

The CEIDG register is open and free to search for anyone. A sole trader’s public entry shows:

  • the owner’s first and last name, and the business name (the firm name must include the owner’s name);
  • NIP and REGON numbers;
  • PKD codes (main and secondary);
  • the business address and correspondence address;
  • the start date, and the dates of any suspension, resumption, or closure.

Your PESEL number and chosen taxation method are not shown in the public entry. Those stay internal to the tax and social security authorities.

Suspending, resuming and closing a business

All three actions are handled online through the same CEIDG system, free of charge:

  • Zawieszenie (suspension): pause the business for a period you choose, or indefinitely. While suspended, you don’t pay mandatory ZUS social contributions (unless you have employees) and you don’t issue invoices.
  • Wznowienie (resumption): reactivate a previously suspended business, effective from the date you specify.
  • Wykreślenie / likwidacja (closure): permanently close the business. The entry stays in the register as a historical record, marked as closed.

How to verify a business partner via CEIDG

If you need to check a counterparty, for example before signing a B2B contract, use the search function on biznes.gov.pl (or the legacy ceidg.gov.pl address). Search by NIP, REGON, or the person’s name or business name. The result shows:

  • the activity status: active, suspended, or closed;
  • basic registration data: name, NIP, REGON, address, PKD codes;
  • the history of status changes (suspension/resumption/closure dates).

To check a counterparty’s VAT status or their bank account on the tax authority’s “white list”, you’ll need a separate Ministry of Finance tool. CEIDG itself doesn’t show VAT status.

CEIDG vs KRS, what’s the difference

CEIDG covers individual sole traders and partners in a spółka cywilna. Legal entities, such as a limited liability company (Sp. z o.o.) or joint-stock companies, register in a different register altogether: KRS, the National Court Register. These are two separate registers with different registration procedures.

CEIDG services are always free

Every CEIDG form and service is free. A letter demanding payment to “enter your business in the CEIDG register” or to “continue your registration” is a scam.

This type of scam has repeatedly circulated over the years. The letter usually isn’t technically a lie (that would be a criminal offence). It’s crafted to mislead by referencing, for example, the Polish Constitution’s right to freedom of business activity, or the terms of some private company, to create an appearance that payment is required. Don’t send money or click links in such letters.

CEIDG and the PIP 2026 reform

Registering with CEIDG doesn’t, by itself, make a B2B cooperation “safe” from a labour-law perspective. Since July 8, 2026, inspectors of the State Labour Inspectorate (Państwowa Inspekcja Pracy, PIP) can independently, without a court ruling, establish that a de facto employment relationship exists where a civil-law or B2B contract was formally signed, if the subordination criteria of Art. 22 § 1 of the Labour Code are present (a single client, a workplace and schedule set by the client, the client’s tools, fixed pay for the work itself rather than for a result). More detail in our series on the PIP 2026 reform here.

FAQ

Do I need to register with CEIDG separately after filing CEIDG-1? No: filing the CEIDG-1 form is the registration itself; there’s no separate step.

Can I register a sole trader in CEIDG without a PESEL? Online registration via a Trusted Profile requires a Polish PESEL. Without one, you can file CEIDG-1 in person at a city/gmina office, or with a notarised signature.

Is it free to look up a CEIDG entry? Yes: viewing and printing an entry from the CEIDG register is free for anyone, including foreign business partners.

Bibliography and Legal Basis

  • Act of March 6, 2018 on the Central Register and Information on Economic Activity and the Enterprise Information Point (Dz.U. 2018 poz. 647, consolidated text 2026: Dz.U. z 2026 r. poz. 30)
  • biznes.gov.pl: the CEIDG portal, guidance on registering, suspending, and closing a sole trader business
  • infakt.pl, money.pl: overviews of the 2026-2028 CEIDG electronisation schedule

Legal status as of: September 27, 2026.

Author: Walery Kusznirski, in-house legal practitioner at MojaFirma.

This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Every situation depends on the specific contract and individual circumstances. If something about your own situation isn’t quite clear, feel free to book a free consultation with our team.