Further to the publication of the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 (the Act) (see our previous advisory), we are now beginning to see many of the measures that relate to Companies House beginning to bite.

We have summarised below various changes that came into force on 4 March 2024, as they affect UK companies.

Communication

Companies on the register will be required to have (1) an appropriate registered office address and (2) a registered email address to allow communication with the registrar.

1. Appropriate registered office: An address is "appropriate" if documents sent there (I) "should be expected to come to the attention of a person acting on behalf of the company" and (ii) "can be recorded by an acknowledgement of delivery." As such, a PO box will not be a viable registered office address. Companies found in non-compliance will be at risk of strike-off.
2. Registered email address: All companies must provide an email address to Companies House. New companies will do this as part of incorporation while existing companies will be required to provide this in any subsequent confirmation statement. The email address, which can be registered for more than one company, will not be made public.

Lawful Purpose

All companies will need to provide a confirmation that the company has been formed for a lawful purpose. New companies will do this as part of incorporation while existing companies will be required to confirm this in any subsequent confirmation statement.

Increased Powers and Fees

Companies House is being afforded increased powers in order to maintain the integrity of the register, which will enable it to:

1. Query filings, request evidence, reject filings and remove material from the register quickly;
2. Annotate the register to demonstrate if information is misleading;
3. Clean up the register and remove inaccurate information;
4. Direct a company to change its name where appropriate; and
5. Pursue financial penalties of up to £10,000.

With increased powers comes increased fees. Regulations published in February have paved the way for amendments to Companies House fees from 1 May 2024. A list of these can be found here.

Oliver Williams and David Wood also contributed to this article.