How to Search for a Corporation in Ontario (Free and Paid Options)

An Ontario corporation search starts in the Ontario Business Registry (OBR), which anyone can search for free by name or corporation number. For more detail, a profile report costs $8 and shows the public record, including directors and senior officers. A certificate of status costs $26. Shareholders are not on the public registry.

This guide walks through what the free search gives you, when to pay for a report, how to find out who runs (and who owns) an Ontario company, and where to look when the company isn't an Ontario corporation at all.

How do you search for a corporation in Ontario?

1. Open the OBR search on ontario.ca. You don't need an account or a company key to search.
2. Enter the name or the Ontario corporation number. If a name search returns too many results, try the number, or add the legal ending (Inc., Ltd., Corp.).
3. Check the basic result: the entity's name, number, type and status.
4. Order a search product if you need more: a profile report for the full public record, a certificate of status as official proof, or copies of filed documents.
5. If nothing comes up, the company may be federal or from another province. See the section on federal corporations below.

What's free and what's paid in an Ontario company search?

The province says anyone can search the OBR for free to get basic information about a business or not-for-profit. Anything beyond that is a paid search product. These are the ministry's fees:

Licensed service providers and intermediaries can order the same products for you, but they may add their own service fees. If you need several documents or aren't sure which ones matter, a business records search from us pulls them together.

Which product do you need?

• Checking a supplier or customer exists: the free search is usually enough.
• Due diligence before a deal or loan: a profile report, plus copies of key documents such as articles and amendments.
• Proof for a bank, landlord or foreign agency: a certificate of status. Our Ontario certificate of status guide explains it, or you can order one through us.
• Showing that no Ontario entity has a given name or number: a certificate of no match.

How do you find who owns a company in Ontario?

This is the most common question, and the answer has two parts: who runs the company is public, but who owns it usually isn't.

Directors and officers are public

Every Ontario corporation files an initial return within 60 days of incorporation and a notice of change within 15 days of any change. Under O. Reg. 400/21, the initial return lists the names and addresses for service of the directors, the date each became a director, whether each is a resident Canadian, the names and addresses of the five most senior officers, and the registered or head office address. Under the Corporations Information Act, anyone who pays the fee can search and get copies of these returns. In practice, a profile report is the quickest way to see them.

Keep in mind that the record is only as current as the company's filings. If a director left but no notice of change was filed, the report will still show them.

Shareholders are not on the public registry

The returns Ontario corporations file do not list shareholders, so an OBR search won't tell you who owns a private Ontario corporation. Shareholder details live in the corporation's own securities register, kept at its registered office. Under the OBCA, shareholders, beneficial owners and creditors (and their agents) can examine those records. The general public can do so only if the corporation is an offering corporation, meaning one that has issued securities to the public.

The ISC register isn't public either

Since January 1, 2023, private Ontario corporations must keep a register of individuals with significant control (ISC). It records each person's name, date of birth, address, tax residence and how they control the company. That register is kept by the corporation, not filed with the OBR, and it is excluded from the records shareholders and creditors may inspect. Under OBCA s. 140.3, only police, tax officials and certain regulators can require the corporation to disclose it.

So if you need to know who is behind an Ontario company, the practical routes are: look at the directors and officers in the profile report, ask the company directly, or, if you are a shareholder or creditor, ask to inspect the securities register.

Ontario business name search vs corporation search

A business name is not the same as a corporation. Sole proprietors and partnerships that trade under any name other than the owner's own name must register it under Ontario's Business Names Act, and a corporation that trades under a name other than its legal name must register that name too. A business name registration costs $60 and lasts five years.

Business name registrations also appear in the OBR, so an Ontario business name search uses the same free tool. The difference matters for what you learn: a registered business name tells you who registered it, but it is not a separate legal entity. If "Maple Bakery" is a name registered by 1234567 Ontario Inc., the company you're dealing with is the numbered corporation.

OBR search vs NUANS: what's the difference?

People often confuse a corporation search with a name search for a new company. They answer different questions.

A free OBR search is a good first check when you're choosing a name, but it isn't enough to incorporate. Ontario requires an Ontario-biased or weighted NUANS report, dated no more than 90 days before you file, and does not accept a federal-biased report. You can order an Ontario NUANS report from us. Our Ontario NUANS guide covers the details.

What if the company is federal or from another province?

Not every company operating in Ontario is an Ontario corporation. Two common cases:

• Federal corporations are incorporated under the Canada Business Corporations Act and kept by Corporations Canada. Search them in the federal corporation database by name, corporation number or business number. A federal corporate profile and uncertified copies of documents are free online, and the profile shows directors. Since January 22, 2024, federal corporations also file ISC information, and the name, control description and an address for each ISC are public.
• Corporations from other provinces are kept by their home registry. If they operate in Ontario, they may also appear in the OBR as extra-provincial corporations.

For a single search across several registries, Canada's Business Registries, a free government service, covers British Columbia, Alberta, Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia and Corporations Canada. Our Canada business registry search guide explains each option.

Tips for a better Ontario company search

• Use the corporation number when you have it. It's unique, unlike names.
• Check the status before signing anything. A dissolved corporation can't enter contracts in its own name.
• Look at filing dates. A company that hasn't filed recently may have outdated director information.
• Order documents, not just the summary, for anything important such as a purchase or a loan.
• Read our overview of existing business records searches if you need records from several jurisdictions.