COMPANY · SIREN · SIRET · SUPPLIERS
How to check a French company by SIREN or SIRET: a due diligence guide
In B2B dealings, a convincing website and professional-looking emails cannot establish a partner’s identity. Fraudsters can copy an existing company’s identifiers to demand a deposit, send a fake invoice or divert an order. Before onboarding a supplier or paying, compare its details with official records.
A company checker helps with this first due-diligence step. It does not replace sector-specific checks or verify the person contacting you.
1. Understand SIREN, SIRET and VAT numbers
SIREN: the legal entity
A SIREN has nine digits and identifies a company or other legal entity. The tool checks its syntax, including the Luhn checksum, then searches the public French business-register API. A valid checksum proves neither that the company currently exists nor that your contact represents it.
SIRET: the establishment
A SIRET has fourteen digits: nine for the SIREN and five for the establishment identifier (NIC). A company may have several establishments. SecurCheck uses the submitted SIRET to look up the company, but its report chiefly shows the head office SIRET and address returned by the API. Do not automatically treat them as the submitted establishment; check that establishment’s official record separately.
EU VAT number: a separate check
A French VAT number starts with FR, followed by a check key and SIREN. If VAT matters to your transaction, check it with the European Commission’s official VIES service. A VAT number displayed in a registry result does not replace this separate validation.
2. Review registration status and consistency
The tool queries the public business-search API and returns registered name, administrative status, head-office details and main activity when the source responds. This check does not certify a transaction.
Registration status and data date
Compare the claimed name with the registered one, then review active or ceased status, creation date and update date when available. An active entity can still be impersonated; a missing result may also reflect source unavailability or restricted publication.
Business activity: contextual evidence
The APE or NAF code describes the principal recorded activity. A mismatch with the offered service deserves an explanation, but the code may be broad or fail to reflect every current activity. It certifies neither the scope of a contract nor the seller’s integrity.
Strengthen supplier onboarding
With SecurCheck Business, purchasing, administrative and finance teams can check a company by SIREN or SIRET before committing. Registry data provides a factual starting point for reviewing a third party’s registration details.
Results depend on the availability and currency of public data. They are not a complete KYC review and confirm neither the contact’s authority nor bank-account ownership.
Explore our business offer3. Match the registry to the person you deal with
Check authority and the person you speak to
Review available registration documents or public records for legal representatives, then request evidence of authority if your contact signs on the company’s behalf. SecurCheck does not automatically verify directors’ identities or signing powers.
Account for restricted public data
Some details of sole traders and companies may be withheld from public view. A missing detailed address does not prove fraud. Request an appropriate registration document and check it through an official source where possible. A Sirene status notice is a snapshot of the register at a given time and does not have the same legal value as a registration extract.
Cross-check digital identity and payments
Compare contact details with the official site and your established records. Hosting a website or email service in another country proves nothing by itself. For deposits or changes of bank details, call a previously known number and independently check the payment beneficiary.
Consult the official French business directory · Find a Sirene status notice
Check third parties before agreeing
SIREN and SIRET checks give your teams a first set of facts. Combine them with contact confirmation, appropriate documentation and payment controls. If data is not published, request suitable evidence rather than assuming a missing result means fraud.
Discuss SecurCheck Business for purchasing and compliance teams