🇦🇺How to verify a supplier in Australia
To verify a supplier in Australia, look the company up for free in the official Australian Business Register, searchable free as ABN Lookup, with company incorporation held by ASIC and confirm it is registered and currently active. The registry returns an ABN lookup returns the entity name, the ABN status with the date it became active, the entity type, whether the business is registered for GST and from when, the main business location as a state and postcode, and any recorded trading names.
The official registry
- Registry
- Australian Business Register, searchable free as ABN Lookup, with company incorporation held by ASIC
- Company ID
- Australian Business Number (ABN, 11 digits) and, for a company, an Australian Company Number (ACN, 9 digits)
- Cost
- Free basic lookup
- Active status
- The ABN status line reads "Active from" a date, or shows the ABN as cancelled; a trading Australian supplier is Active and, above the GST threshold, also GST-registered.
- ABN Lookup also answers machines: https://abr.business.gov.au/json/AbnDetails.aspx?abn={abn} returned 200 on 2026-08-05, so the check can be automated without a paid service.
- The ABR stopped collecting trading names in 2012, and business names now sit on the national Business Names Register at ASIC, so an unfamiliar trading name should be checked at ASIC rather than treated as missing.
- An ABN proves a registered business, not a factory: for a maker claim, ask for the ACN as well and check the company in the ASIC register.
Before you sign: five asks no registry can answer
The register proves the company exists and who signs. It says nothing about whether the supplier survives a bad quarter, a fire or a key person leaving. Serious suppliers answer these five asks without friction; hesitation on any of them is information too.
- Business continuity: what happens to your order if their plant loses power, a strike hits or their systems go down? Ask for the plan, not a reassurance.
- Liability insurance: is product or professional liability insured, with which insurer and to what ceiling? A certificate of insurance is a one-page email for a real firm.
- Exit terms: how do you terminate if it goes wrong, what notice and fees apply, and how do you get your tooling, molds or data back?
- Support in numbers: ask for response and resolution times as figures, not adjectives. A supplier who commits to hours in writing has a support process; one who writes fast support does not.
- Named people: who exactly runs production and who owns your account? Continuity of a named team matters more than a polished sales deck, and employee-review sites often show whether that team stays.
General commercial hygiene, not legal advice.
Verify it in four steps
- 1
Open the Australian Business Register, searchable free as ABN Lookup, with company incorporation held by ASIC
Australian Business Register, searchable free as ABN Lookup, with company incorporation held by ASIC is the official government record of companies in Australia. Basic name or number search is free.
- 2
Search the exact legal name or ID
Search the supplier's registered name or its Australian Business Number (ABN, 11 digits) and, for a company, an Australian Company Number (ACN, 9 digits). If the name does not match cleanly, treat it as a red flag, it may be a trade name, a different entity, or wrong.
- 3
Confirm it is active, not struck off
The ABN status line reads "Active from" a date, or shows the ABN as cancelled; a trading Australian supplier is Active and, above the GST threshold, also GST-registered.
- 4
Check it makes what it sells
A real factory carries a manufacturing activity code and a consistent trade history; a middleman reselling everything is the most common mismatch.
This is a factual pointer to public records, not legal advice. For the full method, see the 7 checks that separate a real supplier from a scam.
We do this check for you
On every Australia company we list, we show what the open record says, each linked to its free public source so you can re-check it yourself, no paid badge. And we go past the big directories to the local and craft makers who are too small for them but real, then verify and sort them, so you find genuine Australia suppliers, not just the loudest.
Australia suppliers by sector
Every company on these pages shows what the open record says about it, each fact linked to its free public source.
Related guides
Questions
Is checking a Australia supplier free?
Yes. A basic name or number lookup in the Australian Business Register, searchable free as ABN Lookup, with company incorporation held by ASIC is free. Some full official extracts are paid, but confirming a company exists and is active costs nothing.
What ID does a Australia company have?
Its Australian Business Number (ABN, 11 digits) and, for a company, an Australian Company Number (ACN, 9 digits). Ask the supplier for it, then confirm it in the Australian Business Register, searchable free as ABN Lookup, with company incorporation held by ASIC and check the registered name matches.
How do I know a Australia supplier is a real manufacturer, not a reseller?
The registry's activity code is the tell: a manufacturing code means a real maker, a wholesale or retail code means a trader. ABN Lookup also answers machines: https://abr.business.gov.au/json/AbnDetails.aspx?abn={abn} returned 200 on 2026-08-05, so the check can be automated without a paid service.