Registered office, service address, and business address – what’s the difference?

If you’re setting up a UK limited company for the first time, it is important to understand the differences between the various addresses you’ll be asked to provide, including a registered office, service address, and business address. Each address serves a different purpose, and you must adhere to strict company address rules regarding the location, use, and disclosure of some of these addresses.

Brief overview of company addresses

A registered office and a service address are both legal requirements of company formation, whereas a ‘business address’ is optional. Confusion mainly arises with the term ‘business address’, because many people use it interchangeably with the term ‘registered office’. However, this is technically inaccurate since they can have completely different meanings in different contexts.

Registered office address

This is the legal correspondence address of your company. It is required by Companies House and disclosed on the public register of companies. Official government mail will be received there. It must be in the same UK country (legal jurisdiction) where your company is registered. You may or may not base your business at this address.

Service address

A service address is the legal correspondence address of certain key persons in a company, such as directors and people with significant control (PSCs).

Official government mail for the individual will be received there. It is required by Companies House and disclosed on public record. A service address can be located anywhere in the world.

Business address

This is usually where a company is based and/or where the business chooses to receive non-statutory mail from clients or customers, suppliers, banks, etc. It does not have to be provided to Companies House and will not be disclosed on the public record unless it is also the registered office or service address. It can be anywhere in the world.

Enhance your corporate image with a Covent Garden business address

A company may choose to use a single address as its registered office, service address, and business address. Alternatively, a company may wish or need to use different addresses for each purpose.

What is a registered office address?

A registered office address serves as a company’s official, legal correspondence address. This is the location where all statutory letters and legal notices will be delivered from government agencies and institutions, including:

• Companies House
• HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC)
• Department for Work & Pensions (DWP)
• Office for National Statistics (ONS)
• Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO)
• the courts

As per the Companies Act 2006, maintaining a registered office address is a legal requirement of all limited companies (and LLPs) incorporated in the UK. This includes companies that sell exclusively online or conduct all of their business activities outside of the UK.

Keep your home address off the public record at Companies House

During the company formation process, you will need to provide Companies House with the address of your registered office. It must be a physical address that is situated in the same part of the UK where the company is incorporated, which can be one of the following jurisdictions:

• England and Wales
• Wales only
• Scotland
• Northern Ireland

Your registered office may or may not be where your company conducts its day-to-day business operations. Furthermore, it may or may not be the same as your service address and/or business address.

What type of address can I use as a registered office?

Provided an address meets the legal requirements of a registered office, you can use almost any type of address, including:

• your home address
• your solicitor’s or accountant’s office
• non-residential/commercial premises where your business trades from (e.g. an office or a shop)
• a professional registered office service provided by a company formation agent, company secretarial firm, or business centre
• any other residential or non-residential address that you have permission to use as a registered office

However, PO Boxes are no longer suitable. Since the introduction of new rules for registered offices on 4 March 2024, companies must now use an ‘appropriate address’. This is defined in Section 86 of the Companies Act 2006 as an address where, in the ordinary course of events:

• a document addressed to the company, and delivered there by hand or by post, would be expected to come to the attention of a person acting on behalf of the company, and
• the delivery of documents there is capable of being recorded by the obtaining of an acknowledgement of delivery

Registered office addresses are placed on the Companies House register, which is available to the public. It is worth bearing this mind if you are considering using a residential address as a registered office.

Aside from the obvious privacy issues, a home address may not create the same level of corporate prestige and professionalism as a non-residential commercial address.

A Central London registered office address for your business

A company may change its registered office address at any time, as long as it is in the same country. The address will need to be updated at Companies House and on all forms of official communication used by the business, including:

• letterheads
• emails
• faxes
• publications
• order forms
• invoices
• bills
• receipts
• cheques
• money orders
• websites

It is also a legal requirement for a company to display its registered name at its registered office address (and SAIL address, if the company has one).

What is a service address?

A service address is used as the official, legal correspondence address where the named individual will receive statutory communications relating to their role in a company. This correspondence will come from government agencies such as Companies House and HMRC.

Companies House requires a service address for every person who holds one of the following roles in a company:

• director
• subscriber (a shareholder or guarantor who joins a company during the incorporation process)
• company secretary
• person with significant control (PSC)
• member of a limited liability partnership (LLP member)

Unlike registered office requirements, a service address does not have to be situated in the country where a company is registered. It can be a home address or non-residential address anywhere in the world – wherever is most convenient location for the individual to receive their official mail.

When should I convert from sole trader to limited company?

To ensure openness and transparency, service addresses are disclosed on public record alongside all other publicly accessible company information. They are also included in the relevant company registers kept at the registered office or SAIL address. However, there is no requirement to include service addresses on company stationery or websites.

It is possible to change a service address at any time. This information must be updated at Companies House and in the relevant company registers as soon as possible. Due to the public nature of service address information, it is beneficial to use a non-residential address to protect the privacy of the individual.

What is a business address?

The term ‘business address’ can cause a great deal of confusion because its meaning is quite ambiguous. Many people think it is the official registered office address and/or trading location of a business, but this is not always the case.

In the context of companies, a business address is the correspondence address where a company receives non-statutory communications from:

• members of the general public, such as clients and customers
• suppliers and service providers
• manufacturers
• banks and lenders
• other businesses

Essentially, it is used to receive any mail that is not from Companies House, HMRC, other government bodies, and the courts.

Business addresses are not published on the public record, so there are no regulations dictating the location of this type of address. However, it is important that business address details are available on company websites, etc., to enable people to contact or find the business.

Annual filings – what your company needs to file

Companies may have just one business address, which may or may not be the location of their trading activities. Some companies might have multiple business addresses in one or more countries – e.g. a chain of stores or office branches in different towns or cities.

Whilst ‘business address’ has a different meaning from ‘registered office’ and ‘service address’, many companies do use a single address as a registered office, service address, and business address.

Furthermore, the trading address of a company (i.e. where the business actually trades from) may also be the same as one or all of these three addresses… or it may be different!

Every company has entirely different needs, which means that the location of addresses will vary from business to business.

Summary of different company addresses

Registered office address

• A legal requirement of company formation
• Official company address where government mail is delivered to the company
• Must be situated in the country where the company is incorporated
• Only one registered office address at any given time
• Disclosed on the public record
• Can be a residential or non-residential address
• May or may not be the same location as a service address, business address, and/or trading address
• Any change of registered office address must be updated at Companies House

Service address

• A legal requirement of company formation
• Official address of a company director, company secretary, subscriber, PSC, or LLP member
• Only one service address per person
• Can be situated in any country
• Disclosed on the public record
• Must be recorded in company registers
• Can be a residential or non-residential address
• May or may not be the same location as the registered office, business address, trading address, and/or other individuals’ service addresses
• Change of service address must be updated at Companies House and in the relevant company register(s)

Business address

• Not a legal requirement of company formation
• Usually, but not always, it is a company’s trading address – the place where day-to-day business operations take place
• Not disclosed on the public record, unless it is also the registered office or service address
• Can be situated in any country
• A company can have one or multiple business addresses at any given time
• Can be a residential or non-residential address
• May or may not be the same location as the registered office, service address, and/or trading address

Set up a registered office, service address, or business address

A non-residential registered office, service address, and business address in a prominent location undoubtedly creates an invaluable professional image, as well as protecting the privacy of your home.

Quality Company Formations’ prestigious Covent Garden address on Shelton Street, in the heart of London’s West End, is available to use through the following services:

1. Registered Office Service – provides an excellent and affordable official address for your company or LLP at a cost of only £39.00 plus VAT. The forwarding of official government mail is included in the price.
2. Service Address – ideal for maintaining the privacy of directors, secretaries, subscribers, PSCs, and LLP members at a cost of only £26.00 plus VAT per year. All official government mail is forwarded free of charge.
3. Business Address Service – sometimes known as a Mail Forwarding Service, this costs just £96.00 plus VAT per year. Mail forwarding is charged at 50p per item when forwarded by scan and email, and Royal Mail postal rates plus 15% for physical forwarding.

If you would like to speak to our experienced team with regards company address services, please call 020 3908 0044.