The electronic trade register: RCE code, reading it and your obligations

The electronic trade register is the trade register extract issued by the CNRC (National Trade Register Centre) in a secure format: it bears an electronic "RCE" code, a graphic symbol printed at the top right of the front side, which holds encrypted information about the trader. The code can be read with a phone using the free app offered on the CNRC portal, and its information is kept up to date by the CNRC. The model of this extract is set by Executive Decree 18-112 of 5 April 2018. Since Law 26-12 of 8 June 2026, any change must be entered in the register within one month.

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In short

Text
Executive Decree 18-112 of 5 April 2018, as amended
RCE code
Encrypted graphic symbol, top right of the front side
Reading
Free app offered on the CNRC portal
Damaged code
Extract void: request a duplicate
Updates
Amendment to be started within one month of the change (Law 26-12)
Contents

One register, a secure extract

The electronic trade register is not a second register. It is the same trade register, kept by the CNRC, whose extract handed to the trader is secured by an electronic code. The extract is still a printed document: it is the code it carries that makes it verifiable.

The RCE code in practice

QuestionAnswer
What is it?A graphic symbol holding encrypted data about the trader
Where is it?On the front of the extract, top right, black on white inside a black frame
How do I read it?With any device that has a camera, using the free app downloadable from the CNRC portal
Who updates the information?The CNRC
What if it is damaged?The extract becomes void: you must request a duplicate
What to know about the code

What the code is for

  • Checking that an extract is genuine: a government office, bank, supplier or customer can read the code and compare it with the document shown.
  • Accessing information kept up to date by the CNRC, rather than a paper frozen at its date of issue.
  • Making inspections by the commerce authorities easier.
  • Making fake extracts harder to produce.

Your obligations as a trader

  • Hold an up-to-date extract bearing the electronic code.
  • Have the extract amended within one month of any change: registered office address, activity, manager, capital, company name.
  • Request a duplicate if the extract is lost or its code is damaged.
  • Show your trade register number on your invoices and business documents.
  • If you sell online, file your domain name with the CNRC, as required by Law 18-05 on electronic commerce.

Your extract has no electronic code?

The 2018 decree provided for old extracts to be replaced by the model with an electronic code, with deadlines extended several times. If your extract has no RCE code, contact the CNRC branch responsible for your registered office to have it replaced. Banks and government offices increasingly ask for a verifiable extract.

Obtaining, amending or replacing the extract

  1. 1

    At setup

    The extract with an electronic code is issued on registration, at the CNRC branch. For a company, the application can also be sent online through the notary.

  2. 2

    After a change

    File an amendment request within one month, with the documents supporting the change: new office contract, minutes appointing the manager, amended articles.

  3. 3

    Loss or damaged code

    Request a duplicate from the CNRC branch responsible for your registered office.

  4. 4

    Check

    Read the code yourself with the CNRC app to check that the information shown is correct.

Law 26-12 also allows CNRC representatives based in the investment one-stop shops to prepare, sign and issue all the deeds and documents that fall within the powers of the CNRC registrar.

Moving your registered office?

Moving the registered office is one of the most common changes, and it too must be entered in the register within one month. If you need a new address without renting an office, domiciliation at Neuron Cowork in Dely Brahim (Algiers) costs 6,000 DA per month, with a notarised one-year or two-year contract, ready within 3 days at most on presentation of the manager's ID and birth certificate.

Registered address in Dely Brahim

Your head office in Algiers. Notarised contract ready within 3 days at most.

  • 1-year or 2-year contract
  • ID document and birth certificate
  • Your mail received for you

6,000 DA/ month

The CNRC portal

The CNRC's Sidjilcom portal brings together several online services: prior-name search and name reservation, the activity nomenclature, required documents and the fee schedule. The app for reading the RCE code is also downloaded from the CNRC portal.

Common mistakes

  • Folding, creasing or staining the extract where the code is.
  • Changing address or activity without amending the register within one month.
  • Giving the bank an old extract with no electronic code.
  • Leaving wrong details (address, manager) without reporting them to the CNRC.
  • Confusing the electronic trade register with electronic commerce: the first is an extract format, the second an activity governed by Law 18-05.

Three ways to get it done

Do it yourself with this guide, have your setup forms filled in, or hand us the whole file.

  1. 1I do it myself

    The free guide

    Everything you need is on this page: documents, deadlines, a filled-in example.

  2. 2We fill them in for you

    Setup form filling

    We fill in your business setup forms, for one price. You submit them yourself.

    • Beneficial owner declaration
    • Trade register, legal person
    • G n°8
    • NIS application

    5,000 DAthe 4 setup forms of a company

    Get it filled in
  3. 3We handle everything

    Full support

    We follow every setup step: 50,000 DA for a sole trader, 60,000 DA for a company, 10,000 DA less if your address is with Neuron.

    From 40,000 DA

    Start my setup

Frequently asked questions

Does the electronic trade register replace the paper register?

It is the same trade register. What changes is the extract handed to the trader: it is secured by an electronic RCE code whose information is kept up to date by the CNRC.

How do I read the RCE code?

With a phone or any device with a camera, using the free app downloadable from the CNRC portal.

The code on my extract is damaged. Is it still valid?

No: damage to the code makes the extract void. Request a duplicate from the CNRC branch responsible for your registered office.

How long do I have to report a change?

Within one month at most of the change, since Law 26-12 of 8 June 2026. Late filing is punished by a fine (10,000 to 500,000 DA for an individual, 300,000 to 700,000 DA for a company) and a formal notice to comply within three months. After that, the wali closes the premises; three months later, if nothing has been done, the court may order removal from the register.

Is my old extract without a code still accepted?

The 2018 decree provided for old extracts to be replaced, with deadlines extended several times. If yours has no RCE code, ask the CNRC branch how to replace it.

Do I have to display my trade register extract in my shop?

We found no general display obligation in the texts consulted. Keep the original on site, in good condition, to show it during an inspection.

What is the link with electronic commerce?

None, except the word. The electronic trade register is an extract format. Electronic commerce is online selling, governed by Law 18-05, which among other things requires filing your domain name with the CNRC.

Can Neuron handle the amendment?

No. Neuron only fills in business setup forms and does not do bookkeeping or routine returns: this guide is free and all you need to do it yourself. If the change is a move of head office, domiciliation in Dely Brahim costs 6,000 DA a month.

Official sources

  1. [1]Ministry of Commerce: texts on the CNRC, including Executive Decree No. 18-112 of 5 April 2018
  2. [2]Ministry of Commerce: commerce laws and ordinances (Law 04-08 as amended)
  3. [3]Ministry of Commerce: conditions relating to commercial activity
  4. [4]Law No. 26-12 of 8 June 2026 amending and supplementing Law 04-08, Official Journal No. 44 of 18 June 2026, p. 4
  5. [5]Law No. 13-06 of 23 July 2013 amending Law 04-08 (art. 5 bis), Official Journal No. 39 of 31 July 2013
  6. [6]Law No. 18-08 of 10 June 2018 amending Law 04-08 (art. 5 bis 1 and 5 bis 2), Official Journal No. 35 of 13 June 2018
  7. [7]Ministry of Commerce: Law 18-05 on electronic commerce
  8. [8]National Trade Register Centre (CNRC)
  9. [9]CNRC: Sidjilcom portal

Written and checked by the Neuron Cowork team, Dely Brahim. Checked on .

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