What is Companies House?

Companies house is a government department that incorporates and regulates companies in the UK.

The main responsibilities undertaken by companies house include the incorporation and dissolving of limited companies and general management of company information for both government and public use.

With more than 4 million companies usually registered at any one time around 1000 staff based around the UK are needed to carry out company house processes.

Companies house makes it easy to find most of the information people need online with services like companies house search to find out more about a company and the company name availability checker for new incorporations.

Companies House search

The companies house search service is based online and gives individuals and businesses free access to the information they hold about limited companies and limited liability partnerships.

All incorporated companies need to legally provide companies house with financial and personal information about the company directors.

This data is made available to the public partly to help encourage transparency and best business practices in the UK.

It is commonly used by businesses to check the particulars of a company of interest who they may want to work with or investors as part of their research before buying shares in a company.

Some of the company information available includes:

• Company registered address.
• Company incorporation date.
• Company director facts.
• Insolvency information.
• Micro company accounts.
• Company confirmation statement.

A free email alert can be set up which tells you when a company updates its details like a change of director.

You don’t need to register or provide any personal info to use the companies house search service and you can use it as many times as you want.

Companies House register a business

The term incorporation is used by companies house to describe the registration process of a new company.

Companies house let’s you register a new private or limited company online or by post. To begin the application to incorporate your business you will need to submit form IN01.

IN01 needs you to provide details about each director and the companies share structure. It will also require your chosen company name which must be unique and available to use.

Companies House name availability checker

Checking that the name you want to use for your company is available is a key part of incorporating a company.

If you choose a company name that already exists or is not allowable companies house will be unable to accept your registration.

Companies house provides an online name availability checker which can help you choose your company name before you start your incorporation IN01 form.

Dissolve a Limited Company

A limited company can be legally terminated (dissolved) by completing a process called applying to strike off your limited company.

Companies house will dissolve your limited company and strike it off their register if the application has been completed correctly and there are no objections to the company being struck off.

You can use form DS01 to strike off a company and send it to companies house by post or online.

How do I contact Companies House?

Companies house has offices based in a number of places around the UK. Public access to companies house offices is restricted with no access to the public.

You can contact companies house by phone, email and online. We have listed below contact information for companies house offices in Cardiff, Belfast and Edinburgh:

Companies House Cardiff:

Registrar of Companies (England and Wales)

Companies House
Crown Way
Cardiff
CF14 3UZ
DX 33050 Cardiff

Email [email protected]

Companies House phone number: 0303 1234 500 Mon to Fri 8:30am to 6pm.

Companies House Belfast:

Our Belfast office is closed to the public.

Registrar of Companies (Northern Ireland)

Companies House
2nd Floor
The Linenhall
32-38 Linenhall Street
Belfast
BT2 8BG
DX481 N.R. Belfast 1

Email [email protected]

Companies House phone number: 0303 1234 500 Mon to Fri 8:30am to 6pm.

Companies House Edinburgh:

Registrar of Companies (Scotland)

Companies House
4th Floor
Edinburgh Quay 2
139 Fountainbridge
Edinburgh
EH3 9FF
DX ED235 Edinburgh 1

Email [email protected]

Companies House phone number: 0303 1234 500 Mon to Fri 8:30am to 6pm.