You may not need another service

If your existing address is in the correct jurisdiction, you are entitled to use it and it can reliably perform the registered-office function, keeping it may be the most sensible choice.

Choose the function before the price

The right service depends on the CLG's registered jurisdiction, the address itself and what the selected service actually provides for correspondence and continuity. A professional registered-office arrangement can be useful where the organisation needs a stable statutory address without maintaining separate premises, but the address must still satisfy the same legal requirements.

The filing is only part of the change

The new address must be suitable and the Companies House record must be updated. You should also consider correspondence and any records or relationships still using the former address.

The address must be appropriate

The address must be capable of bringing company documents to the attention of someone acting for the CLG and of recording delivery appropriately. The arrangement should also avoid treating a PO Box as a substitute for an appropriate registered office; avoiding the use of a PO Box as the registered office means checking that the address meets the applicable delivery and acknowledgement requirements.

The address must remain current

If the CLG moves, loses access to the address or can no longer receive correspondence reliably, the address should be reviewed rather than left unchanged simply because it remains on the register.

The arrangement must fit the CLG

The service, if there is one, should match what the CLG actually needs. A basic registered-office service is not deficient simply because another provider offers more features.

Your own office or premises

Suitable premises can be used where the CLG is entitled to use the address and the registered-office requirements are met. The registered office does not have to be a separate commercial office. If the organisation is specifically trying to establish whether its existing premises can serve as the registered office purposes, its first step should be to establish whether its existing premises already meet the test.

A home address

A home address may be suitable if it meets the requirements, but the registered office is public information. Privacy and the practical handling of official correspondence should therefore be considered before choosing a residential address. If privacy is the concern, a separate professional address can help keep a separate public company address from a director's home, but a director’s service address and the company’s registered office remain distinct legal address functions.

An address provided by another organisation

Another organisation may make an address available to the CLG. Make sure the company is entitled to use it and that the practical arrangements for receiving documents are clear.

Registered office only

This may be all the CLG needs. The key questions are whether the address is appropriate, whether the company can use it, and how official correspondence is handled.

Registered office plus correspondence handling

Some organisations also want post scanned, uploaded or forwarded. Those are additional service features and should be checked against the provider's actual terms. If you are comparing a registered-office and correspondence service, confirm what is scanned, how it is made available, whether forwarding is included and what charges apply. An combined address and post-handling service offer should be checked line by line so the organisation knows whether scanning, forwarding, storage and other features are actually included.

Registered office plus wider administration

A CLG may also need annual filing support, company records, corporate changes or continuing secretarial assistance. That is a different requirement from obtaining an address. A combined address and administrative service should therefore be understood as a combination of separately defined services, not as a transfer of the directors’ responsibilities.

Registered office

The company's official registered address. It must remain in the correct United Kingdom (UK) jurisdiction and be an appropriate address for the purposes of company law. This is why an appropriate registered-office standard for a CLG is a legal requirement, not merely a preference for a professional-looking address.

Registered email address

A separate Companies House requirement. It should not be confused with the physical registered office or with a general correspondence mailbox.

SAIL

A SAIL is an alternative physical location that can be used for relevant company records and inspection arrangements. It is not simply another name for the registered office.

Director service address

A director's service address is a separate address function. It may be the same as the company's registered office, but it does not automatically become the registered office.

Check the new address

Confirm that the address is in the same UK jurisdiction as the CLG and is an appropriate address. If a third party is providing it, confirm the company's entitlement to use it. This is particularly important when moving a company registered office within the same jurisdiction: an address elsewhere in the UK is not automatically acceptable simply because it is physically within the United Kingdom.

Complete the address change

A registered-office change is notified to Companies House using the applicable filing route, commonly AD01. The change does not take effect until Companies House registers the notice. For anyone searching for Companies House form AD01 for a registered-office change, AD01 is the form used to notify a change of registered office; the company must still ensure the new address is appropriate and in the same registered jurisdiction.

Check what still uses the old address

Review internal records, correspondence arrangements and relevant external organisations where the former address still appears or is relied upon.

Use self-service

Your company details are clear, the new address is suitable, there are no connected issues and you are comfortable completing the Companies House filing yourself.

Use an administrative service

You know what needs to change but want somebody else to prepare or assist with the defined administrative work and the practical follow-up.

Ask for professional review

The address question is tied to records, a former address, overseas administration, conflicting information, restoration or another corporate change that needs to be understood first.

Understand the address requirement

Coddan reviews the information you provide about the CLG, its registered jurisdiction, the current address and the practical outcome you want, identifying the agreed address-service scope.

Prepare the agreed arrangement

Where Coddan is providing the address, the agreed registered-office and correspondence arrangements are set up. Where a change is required, Coddan can prepare the relevant administrative work within the agreed scope.

Obtain the customer's approval

You remain responsible for confirming the address, company details and corporate decisions that belong to the CLG. Coddan does not replace that approval process.

Complete the agreed work

Coddan carries out the agreed address, correspondence or filing administration and identifies what has been completed and what, if anything, remains for the CLG.

You Provide and Approve

• the company's current details and registered jurisdiction;
• the address requirement and any correspondence instructions;
• authority for Coddan to carry out the agreed work;
• approval of company information and corporate decisions where required.

You Receive From Coddan

• the agreed registered-office arrangement or administrative work;
• the relevant address or filing information produced within scope;
• access to correspondence handling where that feature is separately agreed;
• confirmation of the work completed and any remaining customer action.

Your Continuing Responsibility

• keeping company information accurate;
• reviewing and acting on important correspondence;
• making the company's decisions and meeting its statutory duties;
• ensuring any wider filing, tax, governance or regulatory obligation is dealt with.

One-off task

Examples include reviewing a proposed registered office, preparing an address change, assisting with AD01 administration or coordinating a defined correspondence transition.

Continuing secretarial support

This is appropriate where the CLG wants separately agreed continuing help with corporate records, filings, governance administration or recurring company-secretarial work.

Company secretary

A service provider carrying out agreed secretarial work is not automatically appointed as the company's secretary. Any formal appointment is a separate corporate decision and filing matter where applicable.

The professional partner supplies

Client authority, accurate company information, the requested outcome and any approvals needed for Coddan to carry out the agreed work.

Coddan performs

Coddan reviews the instruction, prepares the agreed administrative work, communicates the relevant information and carries out the defined service using its own systems and credentials.

Credentials remain controlled

Where Coddan acts as an ACSP, its Companies House access and credentials remain under Coddan's control. They are not lent or shared with the professional partner.

Use your own suitable address

Nothing needs to be purchased if your existing arrangement performs the registered-office function properly. Where an organisation does choose a professional service, it should be clear whether it is buying only the address or a wider registered-office arrangement with additional administrative features with additional administrative features.

Use a basic professional registered office

Appropriate where the CLG needs an address but does not require a wider secretarial relationship.

Add correspondence support

Useful where the CLG also needs an agreed process for receiving, scanning, uploading or forwarding correspondence. This may be relevant to a registered-office service with digital correspondence handling arrangement, provided those features are expressly included in the chosen service.

Consider a separate SAIL arrangement

Relevant where the real issue concerns company-record location or inspection arrangements rather than the registered-office address itself. For example, the location of the register of members at the registered office or SAIL may be a separate records question rather than a reason to change the registered office.

Ask for professional review

Appropriate where the address question is connected to a historic discrepancy, restoration, overseas administration or another corporate matter.

If You Want Coddan to Provide the Registered Office

Coddan can provide registered-office arrangements for CLGs in the jurisdictions and locations available at the time of instruction. The appropriate option depends on the CLG's registered jurisdiction and the correspondence functions you require. Address provision can be kept separate from wider company-secretarial support; you do not need to purchase an annual secretarial package simply because Coddan provides the registered office.

Explore Related CLG Address Services

Yes. A United Kingdom (UK)-registered CLG must have an appropriate registered office in its registered jurisdiction.

Potentially, if it satisfies the applicable requirements. The important practical point is that the registered office is public information, so privacy and correspondence should be considered before using a residential address.

Yes, where the CLG is registered in the England and Wales jurisdiction and the address is appropriate. A London address is not suitable for a company registered in Scotland or Northern Ireland simply because it is in the UK. The same jurisdiction rule applies whether the address is self-provided or purchased as an professional registered-office provision for UK charities and CLGs.

Not necessarily. The registered office and operating premises perform different functions and may be at different addresses.

Yes. The relevant question is whether the CLG has an appropriate registered office in its own registered jurisdiction and a reliable way of receiving and dealing with communications there.

The change takes effect when Companies House registers the notice. The former address can remain relevant for service for 14 days after registration, so the transition should not be ignored.

No. A registered office is a separate service requirement. Wider company-secretarial support should be considered only if the CLG also needs assistance with annual compliance, records, corporate changes or continuing administration.