A step-by-step checklist for checking Latvian and foreign companies before signing a contract
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You’re signing a contract with a new partner—did you know that in 20 minutes you can check their financial status, legal records, and the real owner?
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Which free government resources provide more information about a counterparty than paid commercial services?
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How can I check a foreign partner from an EU country without leaving my office?
The company signed a supply contract with a new client for 45,000 euros. A 30% advance payment was required. A month later, it was discovered that the client had been in insolvency proceedings for four months. The information was publicly available, but no one verified it.
20 minutes of checking before signing would have saved 13,500 euros in advance payment and several months of stress.
Source 1: Enterprise Register — info.ur.gov.lv
Free. What we check: board composition and signatory rights, company status (active or liquidated), authorized capital, registered address, and changes in shareholder composition.
What to look out for: frequent management changes, very small authorized capital for large transactions, discrepancies between the stated and actual address.
Source 2: Insolvency Register — ur.gov.lv
Free. We check whether the company is currently in insolvency or legal protection proceedings (TAP). This is a mandatory check before any large-value transaction.
Source 3: Latvijas Vēstnesis – vestnesis.lv
Free. Official publication of government announcements. Information on the initiation of insolvency proceedings, liquidation, and enforcement actions is published here. Sometimes, information appears here earlier than in other registries.
Source 4: Electronic Court Case System – eTiesasiestade
Free. Allows you to check whether a company is involved in legal proceedings as a defendant. A company with multiple active lawsuits is a warning sign.
Source 5: State Revenue Service — eds.vid.gov.lv
Free public information. VID publishes lists of tax debtors. If a company is on this list, it’s at high risk of financial problems.
Source 6: Land Register — zemesgramata.lv
Free for a basic search. If your partner promises real estate as collateral, check whether they have it and whether there are any encumbrances (mortgages, liens).
Source 7: BORIS for foreign partners — e-justice.europa.eu
Free. A pan-European system for verifying the beneficial owners of companies in EU countries. Allows you to find out who is really behind the company.
Source 8: Lursoft — lursoft.lv
Paid. Commercial data aggregator. Shows financial statements, related companies, and change history. For large transactions over €10,000, the cost of a few euros is justified.
Pre-Deal Partner Checklist
Register of Enterprises: Status, Management, and Signature Authority
Insolvency Register: Is there an active process?
Latvijas Vēstnesis: Are there any public announcements about the problems?
Court cases: is the defendant in a multiple claim
VID: Is there any tax debt?
Land Registry: If real estate security is proposed
BORIS: for foreign partners from the EU
Lursoft: for transactions over 10,000 euros
Additionally: ask your counterparty to provide a current extract from the Register of Enterprises and the latest balance sheet. A reputable partner will not refuse. A refusal is a signal in itself.
20 minutes of due diligence before a deal is worth less than an hour of litigation afterward.
This article is for informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice.