The Business Information System (BIS)

The Business Information System (BIS), jointly maintained by the National Board of Patents and Registration of Finland and the Finnish Tax Administration, includes information regarding business entities, and consists of the following registers:

• the Business ID Register

• the Trade Register

• the Register of Foundations

• the Client Registers of the Tax Administration

• the Employer Register

• the Prepayment Register and

• the VAT Register.

This makes it possible that a new company does not have to submit several notifications with different authorities but it is sufficient to file only one notification at the stage of founding a business entity or when amending its information. In the same manner the business entities are given only one code: the Business Identity Code, i.e. the Business ID. The basic information of a registered business entity may be verified free of charge from the BIS information service. For instance, when purchasing work performance, the company may swiftly check whether the person performing the work is registered in the preliminary tax withholding register and withholds taxes from his/her salary or if the business entity purchasing such services is responsible for performing such tax withholding from the compensation paid to such person.

The search criterion can be either the Business ID or the trade name of the business or an association. It is not possible to conclude on the basis of the Business ID that the business actually has been registered with the Trade Register but this must be checked separately with the registration authority. Also a non-profit association may have a Business ID if it pursues a part-time business in addition to its non-profit activities. In that case it will also be found in the BIS system.