insolvencydirect.bis.gov.uk APIinsolvencydirect.bis.gov.uk ↗
Search and retrieve UK insolvency records — bankruptcies, IVAs, DROs, and restrictions — from the Individual Insolvency Register via a simple REST API.
curl -X GET 'https://api.parse.bot/scraper/72019f0e-1631-4ca0-a134-ed349bd0c668/search_individual_insolvency_register?page=1&query=Smith' \ -H 'X-API-Key: $PARSE_API_KEY'
Search the Individual Insolvency Register (IIR) for bankruptcies, Individual Voluntary Arrangements (IVAs), Debt Relief Orders (DROs), and restrictions. Supports searching by surname or trading name. Postcode searches are accepted but may return zero results if no records match. Returns paginated results with 10 records per page.
| Param | Type | Description |
|---|---|---|
| page | integer | Page number for pagination (1-based). |
| queryrequired | string | Search term — typically a surname or trading name (e.g. 'Smith'). Postcodes are accepted but often yield no results. |
{
"type": "object",
"fields": {
"page": "integer — current page number",
"query": "string — the search term used",
"records": "array of record summaries with name, detail_url, birth_date, trading_details, postcode",
"total_pages": "integer — total pages available",
"total_records": "integer — total matching records"
},
"sample": {
"data": {
"page": 1,
"query": "Smith",
"records": [
{
"name": "Adam Smith Ferrier",
"postcode": "BN1 6EE",
"birth_date": "24/10/1972",
"detail_url": "https://www.insolvencydirect.bis.gov.uk/eiir/case-details/1/false/704773725/711859978/U21pdGg",
"trading_details": "Adam Smith Ferrier"
}
],
"total_pages": 632,
"total_records": 6314
},
"status": "success"
}
}About the insolvencydirect.bis.gov.uk API
This API provides access to the UK Individual Insolvency Register (IIR) across 3 endpoints, covering bankruptcies, Individual Voluntary Arrangements (IVAs), Debt Relief Orders (DROs), and bankruptcy restrictions for individuals and sole traders in England and Wales. The search_individual_insolvency_register endpoint accepts a surname or trading name and returns paginated record summaries including name, birth date, postcode, and a detail URL for full case lookup.
What the API covers
The Individual Insolvency Register (IIR) is the public register of insolvency cases for individuals and sole traders in England and Wales, maintained by the Insolvency Service. This API exposes its contents across three endpoints: a register metadata endpoint, a search endpoint, and a record detail endpoint. The get_individual_insolvency_register_info endpoint returns the register's title, geographic coverage, description of included record types, and retention period — useful for displaying context to end users or validating what the register covers before querying.
Searching for records
The search_individual_insolvency_register endpoint takes a required query parameter (typically a surname or trading name, e.g. 'Smith') and an optional page integer for paginated results. The response includes total_records, total_pages, and a records array. Each record in that array carries name, birth_date, postcode, trading_details, and a detail_url that links directly to the full case. Postcode searches are accepted but may return zero results if no IIR records match that postcode.
Retrieving full case details
Passing a detail_url from the search results into get_insolvency_record_detail returns the full case record. Fields include type (e.g. Bankruptcy, IVA, DRO), court, number, status, case_name, forenames, surname, date_of_birth (DD/MM/YYYY), and order_date. This is enough to confirm case identity, insolvency type, issuing court, and current status for a named individual.
Coverage and data scope
Coverage is limited to England and Wales. Scotland and Northern Ireland operate separate registers not included here. Records appear on the register from the date of the insolvency order and are retained according to the retention policy returned by get_individual_insolvency_register_info. Only current and recently discharged cases within that retention window are visible.
- Screening individuals during credit or tenant onboarding by querying their surname against the IIR
- Verifying sole trader insolvency status using trading name as the search query
- Confirming case type (Bankruptcy vs IVA vs DRO) and court of issue for a known case number
- Checking current case status before extending credit or entering a contract with an individual
- Building compliance dashboards that surface active or recent insolvency flags on named persons
- Displaying register coverage and retention metadata to end users within a financial due-diligence tool
| Tier | Price | Credits/month | Rate limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Free | $0/mo | 100 | 5 req/min |
| Hobby | $30/mo | 1,000 | 20 req/min |
| Developer | $100/mo | 5,000 | 250 req/min |
One credit = one API call regardless of which marketplace API you call. Exceeding the rate limit returns a 429 response. Authenticate with the X-API-Key header.