How do you Incorporate a Company?
There are many reasons why you would want to incorporate a company - hopefully you have a great idea and are raring to get started however there are a several steps you must go through to form a new company.
First - Find a name!
This might sound obvious when you form a new company - however, it is not always as simple as it sounds. Having a name that relates to what activity your new company will be carrying out is helpful especially when promoting your company, however with over 5 million registered companies at Companies House the one you want may already be taken. There are also restrictions sensitive words when you incorporate a company.
You can search for you new registered Company name by using our handy name search for new company which does a real time check on Companies House to help you create your registered company.
Select your Services
When you form a new Company you will need to declare the address of your registered office. This can be your home address, business premises address if you already have one or you may prefer to select a Registered Office address, where your company can be registered. This keeps the business separate from your home address, this is also where all your correspondence for the new company from HMRC and Companies House is sent.
You may also consider having a service address when you incorporate a company, this is the mailing address for the directors - again this can be your home address or you may choose to purchase this service too. All your mail will then either be scanned and sent electronically to you or forwarded by post.
Choose The Principal Activity
When you incorporate a company you must also declare its principal activity. These are classified by Standard Industrial Classifications and are known as SIC codes. As part of your compliance as a registered company, you must check your SIC coded is still relevant each year in your confirmation statement and amend if necessary.
There are 21 different categories and several sub categories under each heading!
Issue Shares
The number of shares issued at incorporation depends on your needs - unless you are limited by guarantee, you will need to issue at least 1 share. You may however, decide t o issue more if there is to be more than one director.
Appoint a Director
When you form a new company you must appoint at least 1 Director. Normally when a new company is formed there are either one or two directors appointed. This keeps the company structure simple and is ideal for most stimart up. As you grow more directors can be appointed and some may resign. You will need to keep the list of current directors up to date.
Each Director will need to be AML checked - that is they are checked to ensure they are who they say they are. They will need to provide proof of identity and proof of address documentation, which will be checked before the company is incorporated.
Person of Significant Control (PSC)
If there is only 1 or 2 director in a Company, they may become a Person of Significant Control. A person of significant control is someone that holds 25% or more of the shares in the registered company, has 25% or more of voting rights and the has the right to appoint or remove the majority of the board of directors.
Upload Documents
If you have a sensitive word in your company name, you may need to include supporting documents to help form your registered company.
Submit for Incorporation
Once all your forms are complete, submit to us, we will check over everything for you, if we need anything extra we will let you know, otherwise we will submit to Companies House. They can take 24 hours to process, you will be emailed as soon as your Company has been incorporated!
