Companies House

The Companies House is a government body that deals with all the limited companies (“LTDs”) and limited liability partnerships (“LLPs”) registered in the UK. If you launch your own business and you choose to be a limited company rather than a sole trader, registering with Companies House is an important part of the process.

As an individual taxpayer, there are three reasons that you might have to deal with Companies House:

• You’re setting up an LTD or LLP
• You’re a company director and need to submit your company’s Annual Return, change of address, or statutory accounts
• You want to close an LTD or LLP

What if I’m a sole trader?

If you’re a sole trader (self-employed), you don’t need to register with the Companies House. Instead, you register as self-employed with HMRC and complete an annual Self Assessment tax return; however, you might have to file a Self Assessment with HMRC if you’re a company director as well.

In the following cases, you will need to register with Companies House:

• You’re taking out dividends (on which you need to calculate and pay dividend tax)
• You’re selling your company or closing it down and claiming Entrepreneurs’ Relief