- Company secretarial
- Corporate
Shorter Reads
The first set of changes brought in by the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023, have now taken effect.
1 minute read
Published 11 March 2024
The first set of changes brought in by the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023, have now taken effect. The three main changes that have been rolled out are:
Registered office address
All companies are now required to have an ‘appropriate address’. This is an address where any documents sent to it should (a) be expected to come to the attention of a person acting on behalf of the company (usually a director), and (b) be able to be recorded by an acknowledgment of delivery.
A company can therefore no longer use a PO Box as its registered office address. Companies that do not have an appropriate address face the risk of being struck off the register.
Registered email address
On incorporation, or on filing the next annual return in the case of existing companies, all companies must provide an email address. Companies House may use this to correspond with the company, but it will not be made publicly available.
Lawful purpose statements
When incorporating a company, the subscribers will now need to confirm that they are forming the company for a lawful purpose, and that the company’s intended future activities are lawful.
Existing companies will be required to make a lawful purpose statement when filing their next confirmation statement.
Companies (and anyone considering setting up a company) will therefore need to ensure that they are ready to take the necessary action.
Related content
Shorter Reads
The first set of changes brought in by the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023, have now taken effect.
Published 11 March 2024
The first set of changes brought in by the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023, have now taken effect. The three main changes that have been rolled out are:
Registered office address
All companies are now required to have an ‘appropriate address’. This is an address where any documents sent to it should (a) be expected to come to the attention of a person acting on behalf of the company (usually a director), and (b) be able to be recorded by an acknowledgment of delivery.
A company can therefore no longer use a PO Box as its registered office address. Companies that do not have an appropriate address face the risk of being struck off the register.
Registered email address
On incorporation, or on filing the next annual return in the case of existing companies, all companies must provide an email address. Companies House may use this to correspond with the company, but it will not be made publicly available.
Lawful purpose statements
When incorporating a company, the subscribers will now need to confirm that they are forming the company for a lawful purpose, and that the company’s intended future activities are lawful.
Existing companies will be required to make a lawful purpose statement when filing their next confirmation statement.
Companies (and anyone considering setting up a company) will therefore need to ensure that they are ready to take the necessary action.
Need some more information? Make an enquiry below.
Subscribe
Please add your details and your areas of interest below
Article contributors
Partner - Head of Commercial Services
Specialising in Corporate, Commercial and Manufacturing
Associate
Specialising in Commercial, Corporate, Financial regulatory and Private equity
Enjoy reading our articles? why not subscribe to notifications so you’ll never miss one?
Subscribe to our articlesPlease note that Collyer Bristow provides this service during office hours for general information and enquiries only and that no legal or other professional advice will be provided over the WhatsApp platform. Please also note that if you choose to use this platform your personal data is likely to be processed outside the UK and EEA, including in the US. Appropriate legal or other professional opinion should be taken before taking or omitting to take any action in respect of any specific problem. Collyer Bristow LLP accepts no liability for any loss or damage which may arise from reliance on information provided. All information will be deleted immediately upon completion of a conversation.
Close