Statistical business register

A statistical business register (SBR) plays a central part in a system of official economic statistics at a national statistics office.[1]

In comparison, a company register has different purposes: protection, accountability, and control of legal entities.

Register contents

Data sources

Countries use whatever data sources they seem relevant: e.g. they often integrate a company register in one form or another.

Type of business units

In EU a corresponding regulation defines register contents:

  • all enterprises carrying on economic activities contributing to the gross domestic product (GDP), and their local units
  • the legal units of which those enterprises consist
  • enterprise groups

List of details recorded

  • identification properties
  • identification number
  • name
  • address
  • contact info
  • VAT number
  • dates of creation/liquidation
  • main activity
  • operational status
  • legal form
  • links to other registries
  • links to other organizations or structural units
  • control
  • ownership
  • employees

Business registries in the world

United Nations Economic Commission for Europe provides Guidelines on Statistical Business Registers which describes the roles of the statistical business register.[2]

European Commission provides a legal framework for business registers for statistical purposes.[3]

See: List of company, tax and statistical business registers

References

  1. Jean Ritzen. Statistical Business Register: Content, place and role in Economic Statistics. Statistics Netherlands^
  2. Guidelines on Statistical Business Registers Guidelines on Statistical Business Registers, UNECE^
  3. Regulation (EC) No 177/2008 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 20 February 2008 establishing a common framework for business registers for statistical purposes and repealing Council Regulation (EEC) No 2186/93 European Commission^