What Director Information Is Public on Companies House?

When you become a director of a UK limited company, some of your personal information becomes publicly available on the Companies House register. This transparency is part of the trade-off for operating through a limited company. Companies House maintains a public register so customers, investors, creditors, suppliers and other interested parties can see important information about companies and the people responsible for running them. The register can be searched online from anywhere in the world.

But not everything a director provides to Companies House is public. Your full date of birth and usual residential address are generally kept off the public register. Your service address, name, nationality and month and year of birth are among the information that can be publicly visible. For founders, particularly non-UK residents, it is important to understand exactly what is disclosed before appointing yourself or someone else as a director.

What director information is publicly available?

For a typical UK company director, the Companies House public register can show:

• Full name
• Former names, where applicable
• Nationality
• Country or state of residence
• Month and year of birth
• Occupation
• Service address
• The companies and appointments associated with the individual
• The date they were appointed or ceased to be a director

The exact information displayed can depend on the director's circumstances and the records held by Companies House. Companies House confirms that some director information must be made available publicly, while certain sensitive information, including a director's home address and full date of birth, is kept on a private register. That distinction is particularly important if you are forming a company from overseas.

What director information is NOT normally public?

Two of the most important pieces of personal information are generally protected from ordinary public access:

Your full date of birth

When appointed, a director provides their full date of birth to Companies House. However, only the month and year are normally displayed publicly. The full date is kept on a private register. For example, if a director was born on 15 March 1990, the public register may show:

March 1990

rather than:

15 March 1990

Companies House can disclose full dates of birth to specified organisations, such as credit reference agencies or public authorities, where permitted or required by law.

Your usual residential address

A director must provide their usual residential address, but this is generally kept private. It is different from the director's service address, which is public. This means an overseas director can normally provide their genuine home address outside the UK without putting that full residential address on the public Companies House register.

What is a director's service address?

A service address is the address where official correspondence for a director can be sent. Unlike the residential address, the service address is publicly available on the Companies House register. A director can use an appropriate professional or company address rather than their home address. For example:

Director: James Okoro
Residential address: Lagos, Nigeria
Service address: A suitable UK correspondence address

The service address does not mean that James lives at that address. It is the public contact address associated with his directorship.

Why does the service address matter?

If you use your home as your service address, that address can become publicly visible. For founders who work from home, this can create unnecessary privacy concerns. Companies House specifically advises people who do not want their home address publicly available to use a different address where appropriate. For many international founders, keeping the residential address and service address separate is therefore a sensible approach.

Is a director's nationality public?

Yes. Nationality is among the information that can appear on the Companies House public register for directors. This is particularly relevant to international founders. A person does not have to be a UK citizen to become a director of a UK company, and their overseas nationality can be recorded on the register.

For example, an entrepreneur living in Nigeria who becomes a director of a UK company may have their Nigerian nationality displayed publicly. Nationality should not be confused with tax residence or immigration status. The Companies House entry does not, by itself, establish where a person is tax resident or where they have permission to live or work.

Is a director's country of residence public?

The director's country or state of residence can also appear in the public information associated with their appointment. This is different from publishing their full residential address.

For an overseas director, the public record may therefore indicate that the individual resides outside the UK without exposing their complete home address. This distinction is useful for global founders because being a UK company director does not require you to pretend that you live in the UK. Your company can have a UK registered office while you personally live in another country.

Is a director's occupation public?

Occupation can also form part of the director information recorded at Companies House. For example, a director's occupation might be recorded as:

• Business executive
• Consultant
• Entrepreneur
• Engineer
• Accountant

This is separate from the director's legal responsibilities. Describing yourself as an entrepreneur or consultant does not change your duties as a company director.

Can people see every company where you are a director?

Generally, Companies House records officer appointments across companies, meaning someone searching the register can identify directorships and other officer roles connected with your name. This can be significant for entrepreneurs who operate multiple businesses. For example, suppose Sarah is a director of:

• Sarah Consulting Ltd
• GreenTech Solutions Ltd
• Online Retail Group Ltd

Her association with those companies can form part of the public Companies House record. This is one reason founders should think carefully about corporate structures, naming conventions and maintaining accurate filings across all their companies. Being publicly associated with multiple companies is not inherently negative. In many cases, it can demonstrate experience and business activity. But it also means that company information should be kept accurate and professionally managed.

Is a director's personal phone number public?

A director's personal phone number is not normally part of the standard public director information displayed by Companies House. Companies House requires various company and officer details, but a personal telephone number is not generally displayed as part of a director's public profile.

This is different from information requested by banks, payment providers, accountants or other organisations during their own verification processes. A bank may ask for your telephone number even though Companies House does not publish it.

Is a director's email address public?

A director's private email address is not normally displayed as part of the standard public director record. This is worth distinguishing from the company's registered email address. Since recent company-law reforms, companies must provide Companies House with a registered email address. The company's registered email is not publicly displayed.

A director may separately provide an email address during identity verification or when dealing with professional service providers, but that does not mean the address becomes part of the public register.

What about a director's residential address if they live overseas?

An overseas director's usual residential address is generally kept private. For example:

A founder lives permanently in Abuja, Nigeria, but operates a UK limited company.

They can generally provide their genuine Abuja residential address to Companies House as their usual residential address. They do not need to use a UK home address simply because their company is registered in the UK. The company, however, still needs an appropriate UK registered office. This creates an important separation:

Can a director protect their information?

Companies House has procedures allowing individuals at serious risk of violence or intimidation because of their company or professional activities to apply for protection of certain personal information. This is not a general privacy option for anyone who simply prefers not to have their information published.

Applicants generally need to demonstrate a relevant serious risk. Companies House also provides specific mechanisms for dealing with certain personal information that has been improperly or unnecessarily exposed. The practical lesson is that directors should think about privacy before filing information rather than assuming everything can later be removed.

Can information be removed from Companies House?

Sometimes, but not automatically. Companies House is a public statutory register, and information submitted to it can remain available for a significant period. Companies House states that information about officers remains on the public register for the lifetime of the company.

There are specific procedures for correcting information, suppressing certain personal details in qualifying circumstances, and dealing with information that has been filed incorrectly or without proper authority. But directors should not assume that an ordinary request to "hide my details" will remove information simply because they have changed their mind.

What changed with Companies House identity verification?

Companies House identity verification is now an important part of the information directors need to understand. Identity verification became a legal requirement from 18 November 2025, with a transition period for existing companies and officers. Directors must verify their identity and use their Companies House personal code to connect their verified identity with their company appointments.

The personal code is not simply another piece of public director information. Companies House describes it as an 11-character personal code and says it is personal to the individual, not the company. It should be kept secure and only shared with people who need it to complete relevant filings on the director's behalf. Importantly, information supplied during identity verification is not itself made available to the public through Companies House services.

What this means for overseas founders

International directors should not confuse identity verification with public disclosure. You may need to prove who you are using an accepted identity document, but that verification information does not simply become part of your public company profile.

Companies House currently allows online identity verification through GOV.UK One Login using, among other options, a biometric passport from any country. This is particularly relevant to non-UK directors.

Can the public see a director's signature?

Companies House has introduced measures allowing certain information, including signatures in qualifying records, to be removed from the register in certain circumstances. Historically, signatures appearing on filed documents could create additional privacy concerns.

If you are reviewing an older company record, therefore, do not assume that every piece of historical personal information follows exactly the same publication rules as a newly filed director appointment.

Why public director information matters for founders

Public director information is not merely a Companies House technicality. It can affect how customers, investors, banks, suppliers and potential business partners assess a company.

A prospective customer may search the company's directors before signing a major contract. An investor may review the founders' other company interests. A bank or payment provider may compare corporate information against information supplied during onboarding. For founders, accuracy therefore has a practical commercial value.A professional company record should be:

• Accurate
• Consistent
• Up to date
• Legally compliant
• Free from unnecessary personal information in public fields

A practical privacy checklist for directors

Before incorporating or accepting a directorship, check the following:

1. Know what will become public

Assume your name, service address and other statutory director information may be searchable worldwide.

2. Use your real residential address

Your private residential address should be accurate. Do not replace it with a convenient UK address simply to create the appearance of UK residence.

3. Consider your service address carefully

Because the service address is public, choose an appropriate address before filing.

4. Separate company and personal information

Do not assume that your company's registered office, your service address and your residential address are interchangeable.

5. Keep Companies House records updated

Changes to director information should be reported within the applicable statutory deadlines.

6. Protect your identity-verification code

Your Companies House personal code is sensitive. Companies House advises directors to keep it secure and only share it with trusted people where necessary.

7. Review your public company profile

Search your company on Companies House periodically and check that the information shown is correct.

FAQ: Director information on Companies House

Is a director's home address public on Companies House?

Normally, no. A director's usual residential address is kept on a private register. However, the service address is public.

Can people see my full date of birth on Companies House?

Normally, no. Companies House publicly displays the month and year of birth, while the full date is kept privately.

Is my nationality visible on Companies House?

Yes. Nationality is among the personal information that can be publicly available for company directors.

Can I use a different address as my director service address?

Yes. A director's service address can be different from their residential address. This is often useful for privacy because the service address is publicly visible.

Can a non-UK resident become a UK company director?

Yes. UK company directors do not generally have to live in the UK. A non-resident director can have an overseas residential address while the company maintains its required UK registered office.

Is my Companies House personal code public?

No. The personal code is used to connect your verified identity with your Companies House records and should be kept secure. It is not simply displayed as part of your public director profile.

Can I remove my information from Companies House?

Only in specific circumstances. Companies House has procedures for correcting or protecting certain information, particularly where there is a qualifying serious risk. Ordinary privacy preferences do not automatically justify removing statutory information.

Does Companies House information appear on Google?

It can. Companies House states that information available through its public services can also appear through search engines and third-party services.

Conclusion

Becoming a UK company director means accepting a degree of public transparency. Your name, service address, nationality, country or state of residence, month and year of birth and other statutory appointment information can be publicly available through Companies House. At the same time, your usual residential address and full date of birth are generally kept private.

For founders, especially those operating internationally, the most important distinction is between your residential address and service address. Your home does not generally need to be publicly displayed simply because you are a director. The introduction of mandatory identity verification adds another layer of accountability, but the information used to verify your identity is not itself published as part of the public register.

If you are building a UK company from abroad, understanding these distinctions before incorporation can help you protect personal privacy while keeping your corporate records accurate and compliant. IncorpUK, as a UK company formation and management platform for global founders, sits within this broader ecosystem of services helping entrepreneurs establish and manage UK companies remotely. The principle is straightforward: know what Companies House makes public, use the correct field for every type of information, and keep your statutory records accurate from the start.