What is the CVR (the Danish Central Business Register)?

The Danish Central Business Register (Det Centrale Virksomhedsregister, CVR) is the Danish register of businesses, run by the Danish Business Authority (Erhvervsstyrelsen), and it is where the Danish company records Prometiam serves come from. Every legal entity in it carries a CVR number: eight digits, such as 24256790 for Novo Nordisk A/S. The Danish VAT number is DK plus the same eight digits.

The CVR number

The CVR number is eight digits. The eight digits carry a mod-11 check: multiply them by the weights 2, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1 and the sum should divide by 11. For 24256790 the sum is 4 + 28 + 12 + 25 + 24 + 21 + 18 + 0 = 132, which is 11 times 12. The check is advisory: the API validates that a CVR number is eight digits, so a number that fails mod 11 is a warning and is still looked up. The EU VAT number of a Danish company is DK plus the eight digits: 24256790 becomes DK24256790.

Legal forms and status

The legal form is the CVR Virksomhedsform code with its Danish label, for example 80 for the ApS, 60 for the A/S and 30 for the I/S. The status is one of active, bankrupt or ceased. The register's bankruptcy state is included, so a company in bankruptcy is not served as plain active. Both active and ceased companies are served.

Names, address and activity code

The legal name is the official name, and earlier names are served as previous names. The address is the registered address with its municipality. The activity code is the main activity in DB25, which corresponds to NACE Rev. 2.1; companies that ceased before 2025 carry none. A record also carries the start date and, for a ceased company, the end date.

What Prometiam serves for Denmark

Company records from the Danish Central Business Register (CVR): legal name, legal form, status (including the register's bankruptcy state), registered address, activity code and dates; no officers, no corporate-event stream, no monitoring, no registry-compliance signal, no insolvency notices and no share capital, and sole proprietorships (enkeltmandsvirksomhed) and estates are never served. Denmark is updated daily.

Querying Danish companies

GET /companies/search?company_number=24256790&country=DK returns the record, and vat=DK24256790 reaches it through its VAT number. The free CVR lookup runs the same call without a key.

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Official sources: Virk CVR search · Danish Business Authority. Contains data from Det Centrale Virksomhedsregister (CVR), CC BY 4.0

Who supplies what

NameWhat it is
CVRThe Danish Central Business Register, in Danish Det Centrale Virksomhedsregister. Its record is the source of the legal name, legal form, status, registered address, activity code, dates and previous names.
ErhvervsstyrelsenThe Danish Business Authority, which runs the register. Prometiam's Danish records carry the attribution line “Contains data from Det Centrale Virksomhedsregister (CVR), CC BY 4.0”.
CVR numberThe eight-digit number of a legal entity, for example 24256790. The key you store for the register record.
VAT numberDK plus the eight digits of the CVR number, for an entity that is VAT-registered.

What a Danish record holds

FieldNotes
Legal nameThe official name of the entity. Earlier names are served as previous names.
Legal formThe CVR Virksomhedsform code with its Danish label: for example 80 for the ApS (private limited company), 60 for the A/S (public limited company) and 30 for the I/S (general partnership). legal_form holds the code and legal_form_full the Danish label.
StatusOne of active, bankrupt or ceased. The register's bankruptcy state is included, so a company in bankruptcy shows as its own status and is not served as plain active. Both active and ceased companies are served.
Registered addressThe registered address: street, postal code and city, with the municipality.
Activity codeThe main activity in DB25, which corresponds to NACE Rev. 2.1. Companies that ceased before 2025 carry none.
Start and end datesThe start date of the entity and, for a ceased company, its end date.
Previous namesThe names the entity carried before its current one.

Frequently asked questions

What is the CVR?
The CVR (Det Centrale Virksomhedsregister) is the Danish Central Business Register, run by the Danish Business Authority (Erhvervsstyrelsen). It is the source of the Danish company records Prometiam serves: legal name, legal form, status, registered address, activity code and dates.
What is a Danish CVR number?
The CVR number is eight digits, for example 24256790. The eight digits carry a mod-11 check with the weights 2, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, but the check is advisory: the API validates that the number is eight digits, and a number that fails mod 11 is a warning, not a rejection.
What is the difference between the CVR number and the VAT number?
The Danish VAT number is DK plus the same eight digits as the CVR number, for an entity that is VAT-registered. Whether a VAT number is registered and active is a separate question that only VIES answers.
Does Prometiam serve Danish directors or company events?
No. Danish records are company-level: legal name, legal form, status, registered address, activity code and dates. There are no officers, no corporate-event stream, no monitoring, no registry-compliance signal and no share capital for Denmark.
Does Prometiam have Danish insolvency notices?
No. Denmark is not one of the nine insolvency markets (FR, DE, GB, AT, CH, NO, FI, US, NL), and insolvency notices are corporate only. The register's bankruptcy state is in the company's status.
Are Danish sole proprietorships included?
No. Sole proprietorships (enkeltmandsvirksomhed) and estates are never served, so searching for one returns nothing even though the business exists.