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Company Formation - The Officers

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Category: Company Formation Factsheets

Last Updated on Tuesday, 29 March 2011 22:58

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When carrying out new company formations, officers (directors, secretaries and shareholders) can be people or companies. If your accountant is providing company secretarial services for your new company, its likely not to be the person themselves, but the actual accountancy practice who is the company secretary. This is called a Corporate Officer. 

To register a "person" officer in your company registration, you need the following information

Their full name
Their HOME address - it has to be their residential address not a work address
Date of birth
Occupation
Nationality

If they have been a director of another company within the last 5 years (even if they arent one now) then Companies House also need to know this information so that they can link this person to the other companies as well.

Because there is no signature involved in electronic formations, Companies House ask 3 questions to help replace a signature. These are the persons eye colour, their town of birth and the mothers maiden name. Its only the first 3 letters of each question to help prevent that information being used elsewhere

With corporate officers, its their company name and company address followed by the name and signature questions of the person who is approving the use of the company.  

A Director is a person who "runs" the company. They are responsible for the general running of the business.  

A Shareholder "owns" the company. They are the ones who receive dividends at the end of the year (if profits are made)

A Company Secretary is no longer required to be nominated as an officer position. Obviously the duties themselves need to be carried out but they can now be carried out by a director of the company rather than specifically nominating a secretary. When you go to set up a new company, many accountants still offer this service because the job still need doing.  By removing the requirement for a company secretary, its now possible to register a company with Companies House with a single person - opening the door to "one man bands" who previously didnt want to involve a second person to be the company secretary to fulfil this regulation. Company secretaries  are responsible for ensuring documents are filed, meetings are arranged etc.