Benin company search: RCCM commercial register (justice.bj)

TL;DR. Benin uses the OHADA-standard Registre du Commerce et du Credit Mobilier (RCCM), administered through the Tribunal de Commerce de Cotonou and provincial courts. http://www.justice.bj / justice.bj serves only a web-server default page, not an RCCM search, and it does not forward to justice.gouv.bj. https://justice.gouv.bj/ did not respond when last checked. There is no online RCCM search to use, and no extract fee in XOF is published, so fees in this guide read unknown rather than free; confirm at source. This guide names no replacement RCCM search address. https://www.ohada.com is the OHADA association site (OHADA.com - Association pour l’Unification du Droit en Afrique) and carries legal-framework documentation, not Benin’s RCCM search.

Who searches for Beninese company information, and why it’s hard

Benin is a trade and transit hub in West Africa. The RCCM system is standardised under OHADA. justice.bj serves only a default page rather than an RCCM search, and justice.gouv.bj did not respond when last checked. No online route was open to foreign users.

Registry at a glance

Name: Registre du Commerce et du Credit Mobilier (RCCM), the Register of Commerce and Moveable Credit. OHADA-standard registry across West and Central African member states.

Operator: In Benin, the RCCM is maintained by the Tribunal de Commerce de Cotonou (for Cotonou-registered entities) and by regional civil tribunals elsewhere. The Ministry of Justice has supervisory authority.

URL: http://www.justice.bj serves a web-server default page, not an RCCM search, and does not forward to justice.gouv.bj. https://justice.gouv.bj/ did not respond when last checked. No RCCM search form could be found, and this guide names no alternative official search address.

What is covered: The RCCM registers commercial entities under the OHADA Uniform Act on Commercial Companies and Economic Interest Groups: SARL, SA, SNC, SCS, entreprise individuelle, GIE, and branches of foreign companies.

Access model: Physical access at the Tribunal de Commerce de Cotonou remains the described route for certified extracts; confirm at source.

How to search

Step 1: Identify the registration court. Companies are registered at the court of the city where their principal place of business is located. Most large companies are at the Tribunal de Commerce de Cotonou.

Step 2: Ministry portal. http://www.justice.bj serves only a default page and does not forward to justice.gouv.bj, which did not respond when last checked. There is no online RCCM search here.

Step 3: OHADA regional portal. https://www.ohada.com documents the OHADA legal framework. It is not Benin’s RCCM search.

Step 4: In-person or agent request. For a certified extract (extrait du RCCM), apply at the Tribunal de Commerce de Cotonou, or engage a local commercial agent or law firm. Required information historically: company name, city of registration, RCCM registration number.

Step 5: IFU number. Beninese companies have a tax identification number (Identifiant Fiscal Unique, IFU). No DGI online IFU lookup is covered by this guide; confirm at source.

What you can find

A certified RCCM extract, when issued at the court, has been reported to contain company name, RCCM number, legal form, status, registered office, incorporation date, activity, share capital, and directors; confirm at source. Financial statements and beneficial ownership data are not on the standard RCCM extract.

What is missing

• Working online search: none. justice.bj serves a default page and justice.gouv.bj did not respond.
• Beneficial ownership: no public UBO registry could be confirmed.
• Financial statements: not publicly available through the RCCM.
• Turnaround and fees: not published on either host.

Pricing

No extract fee in XOF is published on either host, so the table above reads unknown rather than free; confirm at source. No turnaround time is published either.

English availability and practical access

The Beninese government portals reached here are in French. justice.bj serves only a default page, and justice.gouv.bj did not respond. There is no English RCCM search interface. Foreign buyers without French capability need a local commercial agent.

Alternatives when the registry is limited

• In-country legal counsel: certified RCCM extracts and supplementary checks.
• OHADA documentation: ohada.com for the Uniform Acts, not a Benin search form.
• BCEAO: regional central bank. Not a substitute RCCM.
• GIABA / FATF: AML/CFT context. Neither Benin host covers FATF status.

Compliance buyer notes

Neither Benin host covers FATF listing. Check fatf-gafi.org. Key structural points that do not depend on those hosts:

• Benin has a material informal and cash-using economy in trade and retail.
• Transit trade to Sahel neighbours raises trade-finance compliance risk.
• With no public UBO registry, identifying natural persons behind Beninese companies relies on counterparty disclosure and in-country work.

Last verified: 2026-09-04. Sources: justice.bj, which serves a default page and does not forward to justice.gouv.bj; justice.gouv.bj, which did not respond; and ohada.com. For the full global due diligence framework, see our Global Business Due Diligence Guide.