Maldives Company Search Guide 2026: How to Verify a Maldives Business

TL;DR. The Maldives Business Registry is operated by the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade and is publicly accessible at business.egov.mv. Basic company lookups by name or registration number are free and require no account. The interface is in English. There is no API for bulk access. An APG Mutual Evaluation Report was completed in 2025; the Maldives is not on the FATF grey list as of May 2026.

What is the official Maldives business registry?

The Maldives Business Registry is maintained by the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade (formerly the Ministry of Economic Development). The public search portal operates at business.egov.mv, which serves as a one-stop shop for business registration and entity information across the Maldives.

The legal framework for business registration in the Maldives is grounded in the Companies Act (Law No. 10/96) and its subsequent amendments, along with specific regulations for sole proprietorships and foreign companies. All business entities in the Maldives are assigned a registration number and a UPN (Unique Permanent Number) at the time of registration, which serves as the primary identifier across government systems.

The registry covers entities registered since its digitization, with historical records dating to the early years of formal business registration in the country. The portal also provides a profile sheet verification service for confirming document authenticity.

What can you search?

The Business Registry at business.egov.mv allows public searches by business name or registration number. No account is required for basic lookups. Each entity record typically shows:

• Registration number (format: e.g., SP-XXXX/YYYY for sole proprietorships, C-XXXX/YYYY for companies)
• Unique Permanent Number (UPN)
• Entity status: Registered, Suspended, or Cancelled
• Entity type: Sole Proprietorship, Company, or Foreign Company
• Owner or director name (for sole proprietorships)
• Registered business names and activities with associated industry codes
• SME classification where applicable
• Registration date and activity registration dates

The portal also includes a document verification page at business.egov.mv/Verify, which allows users to confirm the authenticity of profile sheets using a verification code printed on official documents. This is useful for compliance buyers who receive company documents directly from a counterparty and need to confirm they are genuine.

Data in the registry is updated as filings are processed by the Ministry. There is no stated data-refresh frequency, but changes appear to reflect filing events on an ongoing basis.

How much does it cost?

The public search and entity profile view are free and accessible without registration. Fees for certified extracts or official company status documents are not published on the portal as of May 2026. The Ministry’s helpline (1500) or email contact via trade.gov.mv can be used to confirm current pricing for certified documents. MVR/USD conversion reference: approximately MVR 15.4 per USD 1 (Bank of Maldives rate, May 2026; verify at point of use).

Do you need a local account or ID?

No Maldivian identity document or local account is required to search the public business registry or view entity profiles. Foreign compliance buyers can access the search at business.egov.mv directly from any country.

An efaas account (Maldives’ national digital identity system) is required for entities filing documents, registering a company, or accessing certain protected services on the portal. The efaas login is not needed for public-facing entity lookups. Maldivian nationals use their national identity card number for efaas authentication; foreign nationals cannot obtain efaas credentials, making the public search the accessible path for external compliance buyers.

Is the website in English?

Yes. The Business Registry portal at business.egov.mv is fully in English. All search fields, entity type labels, status descriptions, and navigation menus are in English. There is no Dhivehi (the national language, written in Thaana script) toggle on the public registry portal. Official business documents and certificates issued by the Ministry may include Dhivehi text, but the portal interface itself is English-only.

What’s the turnaround time?

Public entity searches return results instantly. There is no processing delay for free lookups. Profile sheet verification is also near-instant once a verification code is entered. For certified extracts or formal company status letters, turnaround time is not published; contact the Ministry directly at the helpline (1500) for current processing times.

Is there an API?

No. The Maldives Business Registry does not publish a developer API or structured data feed as of May 2026. Automated bulk access is not officially supported. For platform-level compliance integration, manual lookups via the portal are the only available route. OpenCorporates has some Maldives coverage, but it lags the official portal and is not suitable for compliance-grade verification.

What you legally cannot do

The Maldives Business Portal terms of use restrict bulk automated scraping of the public search interface. Business data obtained from the registry may not be redistributed commercially without Ministry approval. The Maldives does not yet have a data protection law equivalent to GDPR, though the government has signaled legislative intent in this area. Compliance buyers should document the stated purpose of each registry lookup, particularly for AML and KYC workflows, as part of their internal audit trail. The relevant AML authority in the Maldives is the Financial Intelligence Unit (FIU) under the Maldives Monetary Authority.

Practical tips for foreign compliance buyers

• Search by registration number where possible. Entity names in the Maldives may be similar across many entities, especially for sole proprietorships trading under generic descriptors. The registration number (e.g., SP-1865/2015) or UPN is the stable, unique identifier.
• Verify entity type before drawing conclusions. A sole proprietorship (SP prefix) is not a separately incorporated entity and does not have share capital or directors in the corporate law sense. A company (C prefix) is an incorporated entity with a separate legal personality.
• Foreign companies. Branches and representative offices of foreign entities registered in the Maldives appear under a distinct category. Their legal obligations flow back to the parent entity.
• Status check. The “Registered” status in the portal indicates the entity is currently active. “Suspended” or “Cancelled” statuses indicate regulatory action or voluntary deregistration. Always verify status at the time of due diligence.
• FATF context. The Maldives underwent an APG Mutual Evaluation in January 2025. The published MER (2025) noted compliance gaps in AML effectiveness, though the country was not placed on the FATF grey list. Compliance buyers should factor the MER findings into risk calibration when onboarding Maldivian entities, particularly in sectors flagged as high-risk in the NRA (National Risk Assessment). See fatf-gafi.org for the full report.
• Tourism sector dominance. The Maldivian economy is heavily concentrated in tourism and related hospitality services. Many entities are resort or guesthouse operators registered under their island or resort name. Cross-reference any tourism-sector entity against the Ministry of Tourism’s licensing register for a complete compliance picture.

Alternatives if you cannot access the Maldives Business Registry directly

• Aggregator search (free, indicative only): OpenCorporates indexes some Maldives filings but coverage is limited and not suitable for compliance-grade verification.
• Maldives Customs Service: The Maldives Customs Service at customs.gov.mv maintains a separate company search for import/export related entities, which may provide supplementary data on trading companies.
• Local legal or accounting advisors: For certified document requests and high-stakes due diligence, engage a Maldives-licensed legal or accounting firm in Male who can obtain official extracts from the Ministry directly.

Local data suppliers

No commercial credit bureau or third-party registry data reseller specifically covering the Maldives has been verified as of May 2026. The Ministry of Economic Development and Trade’s Business Registry is the primary and most complete source for entity verification.

FAQ

Can a foreign company access the Maldives registry directly?

Yes. The Business Registry at business.egov.mv is publicly accessible from any country without an account or local identity document. Basic entity searches are free. For certified extracts, contact the Ministry of Economic Development and Trade directly.

What is the registration number format in Maldives?

Maldivian businesses are assigned a registration number at incorporation, formatted as a type prefix followed by a sequential number and year (e.g., SP-1865/2015 for a sole proprietorship registered in 2015, C-XXXX/YYYY for a company). Each entity also receives a UPN (Unique Permanent Number) which serves as the cross-government identifier. Use the registration number or UPN for precise lookups rather than entity name searches.

What entity types are registered with the Maldives Business Registry?

The registry covers sole proprietorships (SP), companies (C) incorporated under the Companies Act, and foreign companies or branch offices. There are also specific registrations for partnerships. The Ministry handles registration for all private commercial entities, while public enterprises may have separate oversight arrangements.

Does the Maldives have a beneficial ownership (UBO) registry?

A publicly accessible centralized UBO register has not been confirmed in the Maldives as of May 2026. The APG Mutual Evaluation Report (2025) identified gaps in beneficial ownership transparency as an area requiring improvement. The Maldives Monetary Authority and the FIU have AML supervisory functions, but there is no confirmed open UBO database equivalent to those in the EU or the UK. For compliance workflows requiring UBO disclosure, request beneficial ownership declarations directly from the entity. For context on global beneficial ownership frameworks, see openownership.org. For the full due diligence framework, see our Global Business Due Diligence Guide.

How current is the data in the Maldives Business Registry?

The registry reflects filings as processed by the Ministry. Status changes, new registrations, and business name additions appear on an ongoing basis. There is no stated publication lag, but the data should be treated as current to within a few business days of the most recent filing event. For real-time status confirmation, contact the Ministry helpline at 1500.

Is the Maldives on the FATF grey list?

No. The Maldives is not on the FATF list of jurisdictions under increased monitoring as of February 2026. The country underwent an APG Mutual Evaluation in January 2025, and while the published MER identified areas needing improvement in AML/CFT effectiveness, no grey-listing action followed. See fatf-gafi.org for the current official status.

What is the difference between the business registry and the tax authority?

The Business Registry at business.egov.mv handles company registration and licensing under the Companies Act. Separate tax registration and TIN issuance is handled by the Maldives Inland Revenue Authority (MIRA) at mira.gov.mv. A company may appear as registered in the business registry but still have outstanding tax obligations or an inactive tax status. For full KYC, cross-reference both registrations.

Last verified: May 2026. Source: Maldives Ministry of Economic Development and Trade Business Portal (business.egov.mv); APG Mutual Evaluation Report 2025 (fatf-gafi.org); FATF Increased Monitoring List February 2026 (fatf-gafi.org). For the full global due diligence framework, see our Global Business Due Diligence Guide.