Are you just starting out as an entrepreneur? There are a number of players and institutions that will be essential to your business from the outset, and throughout its development. The Registre du Commerce et des Sociétés is one of them.

The Registre du Commerce et des Sociétés, or RCS , is a database listing all individuals and legal entities involved in commercial activities.

Any company carrying on a commercial activity is required to register with the RCS ( Trade and Companies Register) at the relevant Greffe du Tribunal de Commerce (Commercial Court Registry).

This registration must be carried out at when the company is created. The company's registration number must appear on all its official documents. This step is therefore essential to the administrative life of the company.

To find out a little more about the RCS, let's focus on its use.

What's its role?

As previously stated, the RCS's primary role is to centralize information on the legality and legal status of companies. As such, the RCS is responsible for registering newly-created structures.

The RCS is an institution attached to and dependent on the Greffe du Tribunal de Commerce. A company must therefore register with the Clerk's Office of the Court responsible for its location, and therefore its registered office.

Once registered with the RCS, all information is stored at the INPI (Institut National de la Propriété Industrielle ), which is itself part of the RNCS (Registre National du Commerce et des Sociétés).

Who must register with the RCS?

However, not all new companies have to be registered with the RCS.

The following companies must be registered at the time of their launch:

  • Individuals engaged in commercial activities.
  • Companies whose legal form corresponds to a SARLSA, SAS...
  • Finally, and since December 2014, auto-entrepreneurs whose main but also complementary activity is linked to a commercial or service activity.

By registering with the RCS, the company becomes a legal entity. 

It should be noted that registration for auto-entrepreneurs is carried out at the same time as the declaration of activity, and remains free of charge.

Finally, it is important to point out that RCS registration does not applyto self-employed liberal professionals.

How much does RCS registration cost?

Unlike auto-entrepreneurs, for whom, as we said, such registration is free of charge, it represents a cost for other legal forms. This cost, however low, is worth taking into consideration.

Thus, since July 2014, the amount corresponding to company registration fees is :

  • 49.92 euros for a commercial company
  • 34.32 euros for a sole proprietorship

Other rates apply to companies whose activity is of a craft nature and which are therefore registered with the Répertoire des Métiers (RM), but also to EIRLs (Entrepreneur Individuel à Responsabilité Limité ) who are registered in a special register, the Registre Spécial des Entrepreneurs Individuels à Responsabilité Limité (RSEIRL).

In conclusion, registration for commercial companies remains a compulsory administrative formality that can be tedious but is essential for two reasons:

  • The need to comply with the law
  • Simplify your company's administrative operations

The RCS is therefore an essential partner in the creation phase of your business project.