How to Change Your Registered Office Address with Companies House?
If you need to change address with Companies House, you can normally update your limited company’s registered office online using the Companies House service.
You must notify Companies House within 14 days of the change, and the new address does not officially become your registered office until Companies House registers it.
You will need your company authentication code and, under the current system, you may also need to verify your identity through GOV.UK One Login before using the online filing service.
Changing the address itself is straightforward. The part that causes problems for founders is knowing which company address needs changing, whether the new address meets Companies House rules, and which other records need updating afterwards.
First, Check Which Address You Actually Need to Change
A company can have several addresses at the same time. Moving your business premises does not necessarily mean every address held by Companies House needs to change.
| Address | What It Is | Public? | Typical Change Route |
| Registered Office | The company’s official legal address | Yes | AD01 |
| Director Service Address | Public correspondence address for a director | Yes | Director details change |
| Director Residential Address | Director’s usual home address | Normally No | Director details change |
| Trading Address | Where the business operates | Not necessarily held by Companies House | Update relevant organisations directly |
The AD01 registered office change only changes the company’s registered office. It does not automatically replace a director’s service address, residential address or your everyday trading address.
That distinction matters if you are moving house. If your home is currently both your company’s registered office and your director service address, changing only the registered office may leave the old home address displayed elsewhere on your Companies House record.
Companies House confirms that directors provide both a service address and a usual residential address. The service address is normally public, while the residential address is generally kept on a private register.
What Must Your New Registered Office Address Look Like in 2026?
You cannot simply enter any UK address.
Companies House requires every registered office to be an appropriate address. This requirement has applied since March 2024 and remains important for companies changing their address in 2026.
An appropriate address must be somewhere where post delivered to the company would reasonably come to the attention of somebody acting for the company. The sender must also be able to obtain an acknowledgement of delivery.
A standalone Royal Mail PO Box is therefore no longer acceptable as a registered office. Similar PO Box-only arrangements offered by other providers are also unsuitable.
You can still use an accountant, solicitor, company formation agent or registered office provider if you have permission and their address meets the appropriate-address requirements.
This rule is particularly important for remote businesses. A prestigious address is not enough by itself. Someone must actually monitor the address and make sure statutory correspondence reaches the company.
Can You Move Your Registered Office Anywhere in the UK?
No. Your registered office generally needs to remain within the jurisdiction in which the company was incorporated.
An England and Wales company can normally have its registered office in England or Wales. A company specifically registered as a Welsh company must keep its registered office in Wales.
Scottish companies must remain registered in Scotland, while Northern Irish companies must remain in Northern Ireland. This catches out founders who physically relocate their businesses.
For example, moving your operations from Manchester to Edinburgh does not automatically allow an English company to switch its registered office to Scotland.
GOV.UK states that a company moving its registered office to another UK jurisdiction would need to re-incorporate rather than simply complete a normal registered office address change.
How to Change Address With Companies House Online?
For an ordinary active limited company, online filing is usually the simplest method.
Step 1: Make Sure the New Address Is Ready
Do not file the change before confirming that you have permission to use the address and that somebody will reliably receive company post there.
This is especially important when moving from your home to an accountant’s address or a registered office service.
Step 2: Sign In to the Companies House Filing Service
Use the Companies House WebFiling service and sign in with the email address and password associated with your account.
You will also need the company authentication code. Companies House describes this as a six-character code used to authorise online company filings. It should be protected carefully because somebody with access to it may be able to change company information.
Step 3: Complete Any Identity Verification Required
The filing process has changed from the older system described in many Companies House address-change articles.
Companies House now says that before using the service, you may need to verify your identity through GOV.UK One Login. Once verified, you receive a personal code associated with your Companies House identity verification.
This is worth preparing before an urgent office move rather than discovering it when you are trying to submit the change.
Step 4: Select the Registered Office Address Change
Choose the option to change the company’s registered office address and enter the new address carefully.
Check the building number, street, town and postcode before submitting. An incorrect postcode can result in official correspondence being delivered somewhere other than intended.
Step 5: Confirm the Address Is Appropriate
The AD01 process requires confirmation that the new registered office is an appropriate address under the Companies Act 2006.
Do not treat this as a routine tick-box. If Companies House determines that a company is using an inappropriate registered office, it has powers to move the company to a default Companies House address. Continued failure to replace that default address can eventually expose the company to strike-off action.
Step 6: Submit and Check the Public Register
Changing a registered office through WebFiling currently carries no Companies House filing fee. More importantly, submitting the change does not by itself mean the move has legally taken effect.
Under section 87 of the Companies Act 2006, the address changes when the registrar registers the notice. Check the company’s public record afterwards rather than assuming the new address became effective the moment you pressed submit.
What If You Cannot Access the Old Registered Office?
This is one of the most practical problems founders face.
Normally, when a company needs a replacement authentication code, Companies House sends it to the registered office. That is not particularly useful if you have already lost access to the premises.
Companies House now allows you to request for the authentication code to be sent to your home address in certain circumstances where you cannot access the company’s registered office.
This is one reason to deal with the Companies House address change before a tenancy, virtual-office contract or accountant relationship ends wherever possible.
Losing access to statutory post can quickly turn a simple office move into a wider compliance problem.
Do You Still Need Form AD01?
AD01 remains the form associated with changing a limited company’s registered office, but most ordinary companies are directed to make the change online.
Paper filing becomes particularly relevant in special circumstances.
Companies House says a different paper process is required where the company has been moved to a Companies House default address, is in liquidation, is being restored to the register or is an unregistered company.
An LLP also should not use the standard company AD01 form. Limited liability partnerships use LL AD01 instead.
That distinction is useful because searching for “Companies House address change form” can surface several similarly named documents.
Your Old Address Can Still Matter After the Change
One point frequently missed in basic step-by-step articles is that the old registered office does not instantly become irrelevant.
Section 87 of the Companies Act 2006 allows somebody to validly serve a document on the company at its previous registered office for 14 days beginning with the date the new address is registered.
For a founder, that means mail forwarding should not necessarily stop the moment the Companies House record changes.
Where possible, maintain access to post arriving at the previous address during this transition period. This is particularly important if the company is involved in disputes, debt recovery, court proceedings or other circumstances where formal notices may be served.
Does Companies House Tell HMRC About the New Address?
For the company’s registered office address, yes. GOV.UK states that Companies House will tell HM Revenue and Customs when the registered office address changes.
However, that should not be interpreted as meaning every address held everywhere within HMRC systems, or by every organisation connected with your company, will automatically change.
A business relocation may also affect separate trading, correspondence, VAT, PAYE or operational details. Banks, insurers, payment processors, pension providers, suppliers, customers, landlords and professional advisers will not all receive a Companies House update automatically.
Treat the Companies House filing as the legal registered-office change, not as a universal change-of-address service.
Update Your Website and Business Documents Too
Companies House compliance does not finish once the public register shows the new address.
UK limited companies are required to show their registered office address on business letters, order forms and websites alongside information such as their registered company number and jurisdiction of registration.
After the Companies House change becomes effective, review your website footer, letterheads, order forms and standard business templates.
You should also check contracts, email signatures, invoice templates, insurance policies and banking records where the address is used.
This is particularly important for businesses that automatically generate documents through accounting, CRM or ecommerce software. An old address can remain buried in templates long after the main website has been corrected.
What If Your Home Address Was Previously Public?
Changing the registered office prevents your home from continuing as the company’s current registered office, but founders often have another concern: what happens to the old address in the filing history?
The rules have become more helpful in this area.
Companies House guidance now allows individuals to apply to remove a home address where it was previously used as a company’s registered office. For an active company, you must change the registered office first before making the removal application.
As of 2026, Companies House charges £34 for each document from which personal details are requested to be removed. The application is made using the relevant SR01 process.
This can be valuable for founders who originally incorporated a business at home and later decide they no longer want that residential address displayed in historic public filings.
Simply changing the registered office should therefore not be confused with removing an old residential address from the public record. They are separate processes.
What Happens If You Do Not Change the Address Properly?
The biggest danger is often not an immediate fine. It is losing control of important correspondence.
Companies House, HMRC, courts and other parties may use the registered office for official communications. If your company appears to have an address but nobody is actually receiving the post, statutory notices can be missed without the directors realising.
Companies House can also act where it believes the registered office is not appropriate. A company may be moved to a default address maintained by Companies House.
If it then fails to provide a compliant alternative within the required period, the registrar can begin strike-off proceedings. That makes address management a genuine company-governance issue rather than a simple administrative preference.
A Better Way to Handle a Company Move
The cleanest approach is to think of a registered office change as a short transition rather than a single online form.
Secure the new appropriate address first. Make sure statutory post will be monitored. File the Companies House change within the 14-day requirement.
Wait until the registrar records the change. Keep access or forwarding arrangements at the old address during the legal transition period. Then update the places where the registered office is displayed or relied upon.
If your old address was your home, check the public filing history afterwards and decide whether a separate privacy-removal application is worthwhile.
Handled this way, changing address with Companies House becomes a controlled compliance task rather than something that creates several smaller problems later.
Conclusion
Knowing how to change address with Companies House is relatively simple once you identify the correct address and prepare the new one properly.
For most limited companies, the registered office can be changed online using the Companies House service, with notification required within 14 days.
The details around the filing are more important than the form itself. Your new office must satisfy the appropriate-address rules, remain within the correct UK jurisdiction and be monitored for statutory correspondence.
You should also remember that the change only becomes legally effective when Companies House registers it. For founders moving away from a home address, there is now another useful step to consider.
After changing the registered office, current Companies House rules may allow the former residential address to be removed from eligible historic public documents, helping to separate personal privacy from the company’s ongoing public record.
Frequently Asked Questions
How Do I Change My Address With Companies House?
For a standard active limited company, you can normally change the registered office through the Companies House online filing service. You will need your account details and company authentication code, and you may also need Companies House identity verification.
How Long Do I Have to Tell Companies House About an Address Change?
Companies House says you must notify it within 14 days of the change taking place. The new registered office only becomes official after the registrar registers the change.
Does It Cost Money to Change a Registered Office Address?
There is currently no Companies House fee for filing an AD01 registered office address change through WebFiling.
Can I Use My Home Address as My Registered Office?
Yes, provided it satisfies the registered office requirements. However, the registered office appears on the public Companies House register, so founders concerned about privacy may prefer an accountant, solicitor or professional registered office service.
Can I Use a PO Box for Companies House?
A standalone PO Box is no longer acceptable as a company’s registered office. The address must be an appropriate physical address where company correspondence can reach somebody acting for the business and delivery can be acknowledged.
Can I Change My Company Address From England to Scotland?
Not through an ordinary registered office change. The company’s registered office must remain within its incorporation jurisdiction, so moving the registered office between jurisdictions can require re-incorporation.
Does Changing the Registered Office Change My Director Address?
No. A registered office address, director service address and director residential address are separate records. If several of them need changing, make sure each relevant record is updated rather than assuming AD01 changes everything.
Can I Remove My Old Home Address From Companies House?
Potentially, yes. Current Companies House rules allow applications to remove a home address from certain public documents, including where it was formerly used as a registered office. An active company must change the registered office first.
