Questions, answered.

Most companies are incorporated within three working hours of Companies House accepting the submission. Applications submitted late in the day are usually processed the next working morning.

A company name, a registered office address, director details (name, date of birth, address, nationality), shareholder details, at least one SIC code, and your share structure.

Yes. There is no requirement for directors or shareholders to be UK residents. You do still need a UK registered office address, which our address service provides.

A Standard Industrial Classification code describes what your business does. Every company needs at least one when registering, and it appears on the public record.

Legally they are identical, and Companies House treats them as the same word when checking whether a name is available. The only difference is which appears on your certificate and which you must display on stationery and premises.

We check availability before submitting, but Companies House has final say on sensitive words and names that are too similar to existing ones. If a filing is rejected on name grounds we resubmit with an alternative at no extra cost.

Once your company is incorporated you can apply to any UK business bank. You will need your certificate of incorporation, company number, and identification for the directors.

It is harder but possible. Several digital banks and money service providers accept non-resident directors, though requirements vary and some ask for a UK address for the individual as well as the company.

HMRC issues your Unique Taxpayer Reference automatically after incorporation. It usually arrives within 15 working days but can take up to six weeks, and is posted to your registered office.

Registration is compulsory once your taxable turnover for the past 12 months exceeds £90,000. Below that you can register voluntarily, which lets you reclaim VAT on business expenses but means charging VAT on your sales.

A document every UK limited company must file at Companies House each year, confirming that the information held about the company is up to date — registered office, shareholders, SIC codes, share capital and people with significant control.

There are no automatic financial penalties, but failing to file is a criminal offence and directors can be fined personally. Companies House may also strike the company off the register.

Yes, as soon as you employ anyone or pay yourself a director’s salary. Registration should be complete before the first payday. If you take dividends only, you may not need a PAYE scheme.

Yes. Dormant companies must file both dormant accounts and a confirmation statement every year, even if nothing has happened at all.

The official address of your company, used by Companies House for all statutory correspondence. It must be a physical UK address in the same jurisdiction where the company was incorporated — a PO Box alone is not acceptable.

The registered office is the company’s address and appears on the company record. A director service address is the officer’s address and appears on their personal record. Removing your home address from one does not remove it from the other.

Statutory mail received at your registered address is opened, scanned and emailed to you within one working day. General business mail from clients and suppliers is not covered by the registered office service.

The registered office service covers statutory government mail only. For general business correspondence you need the mail forwarding service, which is included with the Premium package and above.