The registered office address, recorded at Companies House, does not have to be the same address as the actual location of the business. Companies, LLPs and Limited Partnerships can declare an alternative address for the public register. Although a Registered Office is a legal requirement of a limited company in the UK, it is not necessary for a business to provide an address where the business is ‘physically’ located. Dependent on the business type, you may operate from a physical trading space, for example a shop, warehouse or office. Alternatively you may work from home or even from a ‘fluid’ space such as your car, hotel room, or hired business hub. Whatever your circumstances, you may or may not want your actual address to be available to the public on free to access websites.
What addresses do I need to form a company?
There are several types of addresses required for a successful company formation:
- Registered office address
- Director’s service address
- Director’s residential address
- Secretary’s service address (if appointed)
- Person of Significant Control address
- A SAIL address (single alternate inspection location) – optional.
A dedicated address, which is not your home address or physical location, is not a legal requirement but it can prove useful. It gives a professional feel to your company, rather than using an obvious residential address and also allows separation for you psychologically and financially. Rather than providing clients, suppliers and other general business contacts with your home address, you may benefit from using an address which looks more ‘business like’.
Dependent on your industry and the type of customers you attract, it may also be prudent to have a separate address for peace of mind. You may not anticipate a disgruntled customer looking to discuss a problem in person, but for many companies this does happen. Using a service address can prevent unwanted visitors from turning up at your family home.
If submitting your home address as the registered office you should check there are no covenants on the property that may prevent this. For example, some property deeds state they are not to be used for commercial purposes. Likewise, if you rent a property, your tenancy agreement may also include this restriction. Again, a professionally provided business address will help you here.
It is important to note, however, that for the purposes of registering for VAT you must provide your physical address to HMRC. Correspondence can still be routed through a service address provider as long as your real address is also made available to them.
We support many businesses with a virtual address service, from sole traders through to registered charities. Whatever the nature of your business we are happy to provide you with some privacy. Using one of our addresses is the simple solution to keeping your address out of public view.
