Every limited company and LLP in the UK must have a registered office: an address where official post can be delivered and where Companies House, HMRC and the courts can reach you. It is published on the public register, which is why so many people would rather it was not their front door. A business address service solves that, and at ShiftWorks it starts from £20 a month.
What the law asks for
Since March 2024 the rules have tightened. A registered office has to be an appropriate address: somewhere a document delivered by hand or by post would be expected to come to the attention of a person acting for the company, and where delivery can be acknowledged. A PO box on its own no longer qualifies. A staffed workspace with a locked mailbox for your company meets the test comfortably.
What the service includes
- Use of Royal House, 14 Upper Northgate Street, Chester, or one of our Hoylake buildings as your registered office and business address
- A dedicated, locked mailbox for your company
- Post sorted on arrival, with scanning and forwarding when you want it
- Meeting rooms at the same address when a client wants to visit
- The option to upgrade to a desk or office at any time
It is included with every resident desk and private office, so members who work from the building already have it.
Who it suits
Sole directors working from home who want their home address off the public register. Businesses based elsewhere that want a Chester or Wirral presence. Consultants who travel and need post looked after. Start-ups registering a company for the first time and choosing an address that will still make sense in three years. And, often, companies that have outgrown a borrowed address and want somewhere they can actually meet clients.
Identity checks
Because we handle post on behalf of companies, the law on money laundering requires us to verify the identity of the people behind each one. Expect to be asked for proof of identity and address for the directors when you sign up. It takes a few minutes and protects everyone who uses the service.
Getting set up
Registered office, trading address, virtual office: the difference
The registered office is the legal address on the public register, where official post is served. A business or trading address is the one you put on invoices, your website and your email signature, and it can be the same place. A virtual office is the service that provides an address and handles the post without a desk attached. At ShiftWorks one plan does all three, and you can add a desk or an office whenever you need one.
Choose it well at the start
Companies House keeps the history of every registered office a company has had, so an address chosen in a hurry at incorporation stays on the record even after you change it. If you would rather the register never showed a home address, it is worth arranging the business address before you file the incorporation rather than after.
Choose Chester or Hoylake, and we will confirm the address to use on your Companies House filing. When post arrives we sort it into your mailbox and, if you ask, scan or forward it. For the detail on what has to appear on your website, invoices and emails, read our guide on where to display your registered office details.
