A supplier sends a certificate of incorporation and says it proves that the business is safe. A broker shares a screenshot of a CRO filing. A prospective partner supplies a PDF with an official-looking signature. Before relying on any of them, separate three questions: is the document genuine, does it concern the right company, and does it establish the fact you actually need to check?
Direct answer
Match the document's legal name and CRO number to the independent company record. Obtain the original PDF rather than a screenshot. For a digitally certified certificate, inspect the PDF's actual signature validation—not an image of a signature. Where authenticity or current standing matters, obtain the relevant document directly through CRO CORE.
First identify which document you have
A certificate, a filed annual return and a commercial company report are not interchangeable. The CRO explains that incorporation certificates are issued as digitally certified PDFs. An ordinary filing can instead be a document submitted by the company. A Businesses.ie report is an independent compilation of available company information, not a CRO certificate or an official endorsement of the business.
| Document | Useful question | Important limit |
|---|---|---|
| Certificate of incorporation | Does this relate to the company's incorporation? | It does not establish today's financial health |
| Letter of status | What current status evidence did the CRO issue? | It is not a credit guarantee |
| Filed annual return or accounts | What information was filed for this company and period? | Historical information is not a live operational assessment |
| Commercial company report | What public evidence has the provider compiled? | Coverage and source dates must be checked |
| Screenshot or printout | What source and original file does this represent? | It cannot establish the original PDF's digital integrity |
1. Check the CRO number, not just the logo or company name
Search the stated number through Businesses.ie company search and independently on CRO CORE. Compare the legal name, entity type and relevant dates. A genuine certificate for a similarly named company does not validate the company on your invoice. Nor does a business-name registration prove that an incorporated limited company exists.
A historical name can be legitimate if the company subsequently changed its name. In that case, trace the change through the same company number and relevant documents instead of assuming either authenticity or fraud. If the number leads to a different entity, stop and ask for an explanation. Our legal-name and trading-name guide covers another common source of confusion.
2. Ask for the original PDF and preserve it
Request the original file as issued or downloaded, with its source and acquisition date. Keep that file unchanged and save the accompanying message separately. A scanned printout may reproduce visible wording while losing the electronic features that help verify the original. A cropped phone screenshot can also omit the company number, date or qualification that changes the meaning of the document.
Do not upload confidential bundles to an unfamiliar “certificate checker” simply because an email recommends it. Use an established PDF viewer or your organisation's document-review process. When sending a copy internally, keep the original filename and label any annotated or redacted version as a separate working copy. This makes later comparisons possible without confusing your edits with the source record.
3. Inspect digital certification where it applies
The CRO describes its digital incorporation certificate as having a certification feature visible in a PDF viewer, supporting verification of its source and integrity. The important distinction is between the viewer reporting a verified signature and the document merely displaying a picture of one. A pasted image of a blue banner is not signature validation, even if the artwork resembles an official example.
Adobe's guidance describes opening the Signatures panel, validating signatures and reviewing Signature Properties and the signer's certificate. If the PDF contains a digital signature, inspect those details using the supported tools in your viewer. Menu names vary by version. Check the reported signer and integrity result; do not assume that any valid signature, from any person, means the CRO issued the file.
What if a viewer cannot validate the signature?
An unavailable or uncertain validation result is not automatically proof of forgery. It may reflect the viewer's capabilities, certificate trust settings or verification information. But it is also not evidence that the file is authentic. Record the exact warning and ask your IT or document-verification team to investigate. Do not change security settings or manually trust an unknown certificate merely to make a warning disappear.
A claimed certificate that reports changes, an unexplained signer or inconsistent identity requires resolution before reliance. Obtain an independent copy from the CRO where appropriate. Also avoid applying the incorporation-certificate test indiscriminately to every account or filing: different document types have different provenance and may not carry the same certification feature.
4. Obtain an independent CRO copy when the decision matters
Navigate to CORE yourself rather than following an unverified link in a payment email. The CRO provides duplicate certificates for companies and registered business names; select the correct registration type. Our certificate-of-incorporation guide covers the ordering route. For a filing, use the matching company record and document reference, and compare the material details with the copy you received.
If your bank, tender authority or overseas partner specifies a particular certificate or certified format, ask that recipient exactly what it accepts before ordering. Do not assume a general company report satisfies a certification requirement. Requirements for legalisation or acceptance abroad are separate from checking whether the supplied PDF matches the CRO source.
5. Distinguish authenticity from current relevance
A document can be genuine and still be insufficient for your decision. Incorporation is a historical event. An authentic certificate does not demonstrate that the company is currently trading, that the sender is authorised to represent it, or that it can fulfil your order. Check the live register position and more recent relevant filings separately. For current-status documentation, see our CRO letter-of-status guide.
With accounts, record the financial year end as well as the date the document was filed. A recently downloaded PDF can contain old financial information. With an officer or address filing, inspect subsequent changes before treating the historical particulars as current. A tidy verification note states exactly which fact was established and which questions remain unanswered.
A genuine certificate can still be used in an impersonation
Imagine a fictional buyer receives a real certificate for a well-known company, followed by an urgent deposit request from a new email address. The certificate might match CORE perfectly. That only links the document to the company; it does not link the sender or bank account to it. Confirm the transaction through contact details obtained independently, not the phone number on the suspicious message.
For the practical payment checks, read how to verify an Irish company before paying an invoice. Keep identity checking, document verification and payment authorisation as separate controls. Passing one should not silently waive the others, particularly when beneficiary details change or a large advance payment is involved.
A reusable document-verification record
- Document type, filename and whether you retained the original PDF.
- Exact legal company name, CRO number and registration type.
- Issue, event or financial-period date, plus the date you checked it.
- Independent source and document reference used for comparison.
- Digital-signature result where applicable, including unresolved warnings.
- Material mismatches and the evidence explaining or resolving them.
- The limited fact verified, separate from approval of the transaction.
This is an editorial checklist, not a CRO certification service. It helps your team avoid repeatedly checking the same file while overlooking the contracting entity or a later change. Escalate unresolved authenticity concerns to the relevant authority or professional adviser rather than presenting suspicion as a proven allegation.
Sources and editorial review
Reviewed by the Businesses.ie Editorial Team on 2 October 2026, using the CRO's digital-certificate guidance and duplicate-certificate guidance, plus Adobe's signature-validation instructions. The workflow and fictional example are editorial explanations. This is general information, not legal advice, forensic verification or a promise that a transaction is safe. See our editorial policy.