Accountancy Services in and around London, Surrey and Hampshire:

Company formalities

The main advantages of a company are to provide a flexible framework for ownership of a business, through the issue and transfer of share, and limited liability and you can separate your business from your private life in case of disaster. Tax benefits can also be helpful, particularly now with lower rates of Corporation Tax.

Setting up a company

If you want to set up a company for any of these reasons, or simply to protect a business name, Chamberlains will be happy to help. You’ll need to decide on the ownership (shareholdings) and officers (directors and company secretary), and also on the registered office. We can advise on these matters and can set up a company on the day you decide. We can liaise with the bank to make sure that they have the company documents they need to open an account for you.

Legal rules

To gain the benefits of limited liability etc., UK law sets out basic rules for companies:

• The need for directors and perhaps a company secretary
• How shares can be issued and transferred
• Paperwork or online returns to be sent to the central registry at Companies House
• What formal meetings are needed, minutes and resolutions
• Internal records of shareholders and office-holders
• Format for statutory company accounts
• Disclosures about the company on stationery, websites, etc

If you have a company you need to comply with all these. If you don’t, you may be committing a criminal offence or, at the very least, storing up future problems.

New legislation

The Companies Act 2006 has brought new regulations, and you need to make sure that everything is in order. Chamberlains can help and can provide a full company secretarial service.