Share certificates
We generate an official share certificate for each shareholder in your company.
Company shares
Get official share certificates for your company.
Share certificates are the proof of who owns your company. Smartbook generates properly formatted share certificates and helps you keep a clean share register — free with your Smartbook account.
What you get
- Properly formatted share certificates issued
- Correct share allocation per shareholder
- Share register set up or tidied up
- Free with your Smartbook account
From
Free
Turnaround
Instant
For
South African companies documenting their shareholding
Registering a company at CIPC creates the shares, but it doesn't hand you the paperwork that proves who owns them. Share certificates are the documents each shareholder holds as evidence of their stake, and a share register is the company's internal record of all of it. Banks, investors, buyers and beneficial-ownership filings all rely on this being correct.
Too many small companies never issue certificates or lose track of their register — then scramble when a funder or buyer asks. Smartbook generates properly formatted share certificates for each shareholder and helps you keep a clean share register, so your ownership is always documented and ready to prove. It's free for Smartbook clients.
When you need this
Get share certificates when you:
- Have registered a company but never issued certificates
- Are bringing in a new shareholder or investor
- Need to prove ownership to a bank, funder or buyer
- Are filing beneficial ownership and need a clean share register
- Have lost or never received your original certificates
What's included
Correct allocation
We make sure the number and class of shares match how ownership is actually split.
Share register
We help you set up or tidy your share register — the company's record of ownership.
New shareholders
Bringing someone in? We reflect the new shareholding across the certificates and register.
BO-ready records
We keep it in a format that supports your beneficial ownership filing.
Instant delivery
Certificates are generated and delivered to you straight away.
How it works
Send us your shareholding
Tell us who the shareholders are and how the shares are split.
We generate the documents
We produce the share certificates and set up or update your share register.
Ownership documented
You get official certificates and a clean register, ready to prove ownership anytime.
What we need from you
- Company registration details
- Names and ID details of each shareholder
- How the shares are split between shareholders
- Details of any recent or planned share changes
Common questions
What is a share certificate?
It's the official document that proves a shareholder owns a specific number of shares in your company. Each shareholder should hold one, and the company keeps a share register recording all shareholdings.
Do I legally need share certificates?
Companies are required to keep proper records of their shareholding, including a securities (share) register. Certificates are the standard evidence of ownership that shareholders hold, and banks and investors routinely ask for them.
I never got certificates when I registered — is that a problem?
It's common and easily fixed. CIPC registration creates the shares but doesn't issue certificates. We generate them for you and set up the share register so your records are complete.
How do share certificates relate to beneficial ownership?
Your beneficial ownership filing has to reflect who really owns the company, traced through the shareholding. A clean share register and certificates make that filing accurate and defensible.
Can you update them when shares change?
Yes. When you bring in a shareholder, transfer shares or restructure, we reissue certificates and update the register so everything stays consistent.
Is this free?
Yes — generating your share certificates and helping with the register is one of our free tools for Smartbook clients.
Related services
Last reviewed: June 2026. Smartbook keeps this page current with CIPC and SARS rules.
Ready to get this sorted?
Tell us about your company and we'll send a free compliance check.
Get my share certificates