Running a limited company: your responsibilities

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Company changes you must report

You must report certain changes to Companies House.

Changing your company’s registered office address

You must tell Companies House if you want to change your company’s registered office address. If the change is approved, they will tell HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC).

Your company’s new registered office address must be in the same part of the UK that the company was registered (incorporated).

For example, if your company was registered in England and Wales, the new registered office address must be in England or Wales.

Your address will not officially change until Companies House has registered it.

Changing your company’s registered email address

There’s a different process if you need to change your company’s registered email address.

Other changes you must report

You must tell HMRC if:

You must tell Companies House within 14 days if you make changes to:

  • the address where you keep your records, and which records you keep there
  • directors or their personal details, like their address
  • ‘people with significant control’, or their personal details like a new address
  • company secretaries (appointing a new one or ending an existing one’s appointment)

You must tell Companies House within a month if you issue more shares in your company.

How to report changes to Companies House

You can:

You must update your registered email address separately.

Changes that shareholders must approve

You may need to get shareholders to vote on the decision if you want to:

  • change the company name
  • remove a director
  • change the company’s articles of association

This is called ‘passing a resolution’. Most resolutions will need a majority to agree (called an ‘ordinary resolution’). Some might require a 75% majority (called a ‘special resolution’).

Companies House has more details about the types of changes and resolutions you must report to them.

Your new company name will not take effect until it’s registered by Companies House - they’ll tell you when this happens.

Shareholder voting

When you’re working out whether you have a majority, count the number of shares that give the owner the right to vote, rather than the number of shareholders.

You do not necessarily need to have a meeting of shareholders to pass a resolution. If the right amount of shareholders have told you they agree, you can confirm the resolution in writing. But you must write to all shareholders letting them know about the decision.

View a printable version of the whole guide

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