Ryan Patrick

If you have ever searched for a UK company on the Companies House register, you may have noticed that information remains available long after a business has stopped trading. A company can be dissolved years ago and still have a visible Companies House record showing its name, company number, incorporation

Starting and running a UK limited company comes with more than the cost of incorporation. Companies House charges fees for certain registrations, filings, certificates and company changes, and those fees can vary depending on whether you file online, by software or on paper. For founders, one of the most important

Yes. Overseas directors can verify their identity for Companies House, and they do not need to live in the UK to complete the process. Since 18 November 2025, identity verification has been a legal requirement for company directors and people with significant control (PSCs), introduced as part of reforms under

Companies House identity verification is now a legal requirement for many people involved in UK companies. The rules are being introduced in phases, so the answer to “Who must verify their identity?” depends on your role, when you took that role and, in some cases, the type of entity involved.

Companies House identity verification is one of the biggest changes to UK company administration in recent years. Since 18 November 2025, identity verification has been a legal requirement for company directors and people with significant control (PSCs), introduced as part of reforms under the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act

If a company is about to be struck off the Companies House register, interested parties may have a legal and practical reason to stop it. This is particularly important where the company owes money, is involved in a dispute, has ongoing legal obligations, or has applied for strike-off when it

When a UK company is struck off the Companies House register, it is removed from the register and, once dissolution takes effect, it legally ceases to exist. The company can no longer trade, enter into new contracts, receive payments or deal with its assets as a legal entity. For directors

A company being dissolved does not always mean that it is gone forever. In some circumstances, a UK company that has been struck off the Companies House register can be restored, bringing it back into legal existence. This can be important if the company still owns assets, has outstanding contracts,

Running a UK limited company involves more than registering the business. Once your company is incorporated, you have continuing responsibilities to keep its Companies House information accurate and file documents by the relevant deadlines. For many companies, Companies House WebFiling is one of the main online tools used to meet

If you run a UK limited company, you will eventually need to submit information to Companies House. For many businesses, that means filing accounts, confirmation statements and changes to company officers or other registered information. One of the established ways to do this is Companies House WebFiling. WebFiling is Companies

Transferring shares in a UK limited company is a common business transaction. It can happen when a founder sells part of their stake, an investor joins the company, shares are transferred between family members, or one shareholder exits the business. The process, however, is more than simply changing a name

Allotting new shares is one of the most common ways for a UK limited company to raise money, bring in a new investor, reward a team member or restructure ownership. But issuing shares is not simply a matter of agreeing that someone should receive them. The company must have the

Changing shareholders in a UK limited company is not as simple as editing a name on the Companies House register. In most cases, the ownership change happens through a share transfer, and Companies House records the updated ownership information through the company’s next confirmation statement rather than immediately when

If you need an official UK company document for a bank, investor, solicitor, overseas authority, regulator or business transaction, a normal Companies House download may not be enough. Companies House allows anyone to view and download many company records for free. However, when an organisation specifically asks for a certified

If you have recently registered a UK limited company, one of the first documents you will need is your Certificate of Incorporation. It is the official document issued by Companies House confirming that your company has been legally incorporated. For many founders, the certificate arrives as part of the incorporation

When you register a limited company in the UK, one document confirms that the process has successfully created a legal company: the Certificate of Incorporation. It is one of the first and most important documents a new company receives from Companies House. It confirms that the company has been legally

Yes. Most Companies House filing mistakes can be corrected, but the method depends on what went wrong, which document was filed, and whether the mistake concerns information that should be replaced, amended, or removed. A simple typo is not always treated the same way as an incorrect director appointment date,

If you have recently changed your company name, appointed a director, moved your registered office or updated your company details, one question usually comes next: how long will it take for the change to appear on Companies House? The short answer is: it depends on the type of filing, how

Running a UK limited company comes with an ongoing administrative responsibility: keeping the information held by Companies House accurate and filing required documents on time. For many small businesses, the difficult part is not understanding that filings are required. It is knowing exactly what needs to be filed, when it

Yes. Companies House can reject a filing if it does not meet the legal, technical or administrative requirements for delivery. A rejection does not necessarily mean the company has done something unlawful or that the underlying transaction is invalid. Often, it simply means the document could not be accepted in

Missing a Companies House deadline is more serious than simply being a few days late with paperwork. Depending on what you failed to file, you could face a financial penalty, a company record showing overdue filings, enforcement action, or, in persistent cases, the risk of your company being struck off

Every UK limited company has an ongoing responsibility to keep its Companies House information accurate. One of the main ways it does this is by filing a confirmation statement. A confirmation statement is an annual filing that confirms the information Companies House holds about your company is correct and up

If the ownership or control of your UK company changes, keeping your People with Significant Control (PSC) information accurate is an important Companies House responsibility. A PSC is generally an individual who owns or controls a significant part of a company. This can include someone who holds more than 25%

If your company has changed what it does, your Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) code may need to change too. A SIC code is the five-digit code Companies House uses to describe a company's principal business activities. It is recorded on the public register and helps identify the type

Removing a company secretary from a UK limited company is usually a straightforward process, but it should be handled as a formal corporate change rather than simply deleting someone's name from the Companies House register. For most private limited companies, having a company secretary is optional unless the