Registered Office and Service Address Rules Explained

Every UK limited company must have a registered office: a physical address, in the same part of the UK the company was incorporated in, where official post will actually reach someone acting for the company. Each director must also give a service address, which is public, and a home address, which Companies House keeps private. Mixing these up is the usual reason a director's home address ends up on the public register. This guide explains what each address is for and how to choose them.

Key takeaways

• The registered office must be an "appropriate address". A PO Box on its own is not acceptable.
• The registered office and each director's service address are shown on the public register.
• A director's usual residential address is given to Companies House but is not shown publicly, unless the same address is also used as a service address or the registered office.
• Companies must also give Companies House a registered email address, which is not published.
• A change of registered office only takes effect once Companies House has registered it.

What is a registered office?

The registered office is your company's official address. It is where Companies House and HMRC send statutory mail, such as reminders, notices and formal letters about the company. It does not have to be where you trade from. A mobile mechanic, an online seller and a private hire driver operating through a company all need a registered office, even though none of them has a shop front.

The rules are set out on GOV.UK under registered office addresses and email addresses. The address must be:

• a physical address in the UK;
• in the same country the company is registered in. A company registered in Scotland, for example, must have a registered office in Scotland;
• an "appropriate" address.

What "appropriate address" means

Since 4 March 2024, a registered office has had to be an appropriate address. In plain terms that means two things. First, post addressed to the company and delivered there will come to the attention of someone acting on the company's behalf. Second, it is possible for the sender to get confirmation that the item was delivered.

That is why a PO Box alone no longer works. GOV.UK says you can no longer use a Royal Mail PO Box, or a similar service from another company, as a registered office. It also warns that a company could be struck off the register if it does not provide a registered office that meets the requirements. An address where letters pile up unopened carries the same practical risk: you miss a deadline you did not know about.

The registered email address

Companies must also give Companies House a registered email address. It is not shown on the public register, and Companies House may use it to contact you about the company. GOV.UK says you must read the emails the company receives there, so use an inbox that someone checks, not an address set up once for the formation and then forgotten.

Director addresses: service and residential

Each director gives Companies House two addresses.

• Service address. Also called a correspondence address. This is where official post for the director personally is sent, and it is shown on the public register next to their name.
• Usual residential address. This is where the director lives. Companies House holds it but does not show it publicly.

The catch is that if you type your home address into the service address box, or use it as the registered office, it becomes public by that route. The residential address field stays private, but the same address is now visible elsewhere on the company's record. Our guide to limited company director responsibilities covers the other duties that come with the role.

The three addresses compared

Options for your registered office

• Your trading premises. Simple if you have an office, unit or shop that is staffed and where post is opened.
• Your home. Allowed, and common for one-person companies, but it will be public. Check your tenancy or mortgage terms too.
• Your accountant's or solicitor's address. GOV.UK says you must get their permission first, and the address must still meet all of the requirements.
• An agent's address. A formation or address agent can provide one. Make sure post is forwarded or scanned promptly, because the duty to deal with it stays with the company.

Whichever you choose, GOV.UK says the address must be in place before you register the company.

Step by step: setting or changing your addresses

1. Decide what you are happy to make public. Assume anything entered as the registered office or a service address can be seen by customers, suppliers and anyone else.
2. Choose a registered office that passes the tests. Physical, in the right UK country, and somewhere post is opened and delivery can be acknowledged.
3. Get permission if the address belongs to someone else.
4. Choose a service address for each director and enter the true home address only in the residential address field.
5. Set a registered email address that is monitored.
6. To change the registered office, notify Companies House online or on form AD01. GOV.UK explains how to file changes to a company with Companies House. The change takes effect when it is registered.
7. Tell everyone else. HMRC, your bank, insurers and suppliers do not all update automatically. Change your invoices, website and email footer as well.
8. Review at each confirmation statement. It is the natural yearly prompt to check the details are still right. See the confirmation statement explained.

The wider list of things a company must keep up to date is in the GOV.UK guide to running a limited company.

Worked example (illustrative)

"Harbourline Couriers Ltd", an illustrative example, is a new one-director delivery company registered in England and Wales. The director works from her flat in London and has no business premises.

When she first drafts the application, she enters the flat as the registered office, as her service address and as her residential address. Had she submitted it like that, her home address would have appeared on the public register twice: once as the company's registered office and once beside her name as a director.

Instead she asks an adviser whose office is in England for written permission to use that office as the registered office, and uses the same address as her service address. Her flat goes only in the residential address field. She gives Companies House an email address she checks daily. The public record now shows the office address, and her home address is held by Companies House but not displayed.

The company and its circumstances are invented for illustration and are not a real client.

Common mistakes

• Using a home address as the service address without realising it is public. This is the most frequent cause of an exposed home address.
• Relying on a PO Box. On its own it is not an appropriate address for a registered office.
• Moving and assuming the change is automatic. Until Companies House registers the new address, the old one is still the registered office and statutory post will keep going there.
• Using someone else's address without asking. You need their permission, and you need a reliable way to receive the post.
• Forgetting HMRC and the bank. Telling Companies House does not update every other record held about the company.

How we can help

We look after the accounts, tax and Companies House filings for small limited companies, and we can talk you through your address choices before you incorporate or when you move. If you are just starting out, our guide to a new limited company's first year sets out what comes next. Our limited company packages start from £75 per month on a fixed fee. View our pricing, or contact us with any questions about your company's details.