Hi there, Nicholas Campion here from 1st Formations, and welcome to another episode of Whiteboard
Thursday, where we provide advice on a wide range of business and company matters. If
you find this video useful and you enjoy it, please give us a like and share it with your
friends and colleagues. But for now, let's get started.
In today’s video we’re going to take a close look at the addresses all directors
need to submit to Companies House, including what they’re used for, and some key privacy
considerations that you’ll want to take into account.
Now, company directors are required to provide Companies House with two addresses: their
home address and their correspondence address. You’ll find that the home address will sometimes
be referred to as the ‘usual residential address’, and details of this will be stored
on a private register at Companies House, and as such is not visible to the general
public. In addition to disclosing a residential address,
company directors must also provide what’s called a ‘correspondence address’, sometimes
referred to as a ‘service address.’ Unlike home addresses, the correspondence address
is displayed on the public register, so it is visible to the general public.
So, how are these two addresses used? The disclosure of a director’s home address
is regulated by the Companies (Disclosure of Address) Regulations 2009, and the primary
reason for doing so is for use by credit reference agencies and specified public authorities
such as the Police. The correspondence address meanwhile is used
for the purposes of receiving any official correspondence relating to the role of a company director,
and this can include formal letters from Companies House or HMRC.
So, the two addresses serve very different purposes. And whilst the home address and
correspondence address are listed separately, that doesn’t mean they can’t be the same
address. You can use your home address as your correspondence address, if you wish,
as there is no requirement for your correspondence address to be commercial office-based. Although,
there are of course reasons why you might not want to list your home as your correspondence
address – and we’ll come on to that in just a moment.
Whilst you are quite free to select a correspondence address of your choice, you are not afforded
the same flexibility with your home address, which cannot be listed as a commercial office
address. It has to be the usual residential address of the director.
You also need to bear in mind that these addresses are not static – both can be changed at
Companies House. Indeed, if you move house, you have to submit form CH01 to Companies
House within 14 days to update your director’s home address. If you’re also listed as a
PSC, you’ll need to file form PSC04 within 28 days to change the home address.
You can also change your correspondence address at any time using the same forms. It is really
important that you keep your addresses up to date and current at Companies House.
Now, just coming back to the point of using your home as your correspondence address – many
directors, particularly those who work from home, will often list their home as their
correspondence address. And whilst there’s nothing to say you’re not allowed to do
this, the problem is - the correspondence address, again, appears on the public register
of companies. As such, disgruntled consumers or activists
will have access to the home address of the company director. In certain circumstances
this can pose a nuisance or even a danger to the director and their family who reside
at the same address. So, as you can see, there is a privacy concern here, given how
easily accessible the correspondence address is.
It is therefore advisable that company directors do not use their home correspondence address.
If they do not have a commercial office location, there are various professional address services
which will provide an external correspondence address for company directors.
1st Formations provides a service address which can be used by company directors, company
secretaries and PSCs for an annual cost of £26.00 plus VAT. This address will appear
on the public register, ensuring that the home addresses of directors remain private.
All official government mail will be scanned and emailed to the director on a daily basis,
free of charge, and I have included the link to this service below.
So, let’s just say that you no longer want your home address listed as your correspondence
address – maybe for the reasons we’ve just talked about. The only problem… it’s
already been reported to Companies House, so it’s publicly visible. You could change
your correspondence address using the CH01 form (as well as the PSC04 form, if applicable)
that we discussed earlier. But this only solves part of the problem - these forms update your
current correspondence address listed on Companies House, but your home address will still appear
publicly in your company’s filing history. So where does that leave you - can you ask
Companies House to remove your correspondence address from the public register?
Well, the good news is yes! Under section 1088 of the Companies Act 2006, if company
directors use their home as their correspondence address, they are able to request it is removed
from the public register, so long as they provide an alternative correspondence address
which will appear in its place. To make this application, you’ll need to submit the form
SR01 to apply to remove your home address, or part of it, at a cost of £32.00 for every
document where you need this removing. A link to this form is also provided below.
And there you have it. Today we’ve looked at the two addresses
each director must provide to Companies House, what they’re used for, how they are changed,
as well as some of the privacy considerations you may want to take into account.
If you have any questions, please leave them in the comments section below, and in the
meantime be sure to subscribe to our channel to get more advice on limited companies, reporting
requirements, and tax obligations. We're always happy to hear from you, and we
cannot wait to help. Until next time, cheerio.