How to Remove Your Home Address from the Companies House Register

Many business owners initially use their home address as the registered office address for the company that they have incorporated, not realising that it therefore appears in the online public register for all to see. If you have registered your home address with Companies House as your company’s registered address in the past then you may want it removed from the public register to protect your privacy as a business owner. The good news is that, in most cases, you can have your home address removed from the Companies House register of companies, although there are some restrictions of which to be aware. This guide will take you through removing your home address from the Companies House register by filing an SR01 form to safeguard your privacy.

Can I remove my home address from the Companies House register?

Yes: Under the Companies (Disclosure of Address) (Amendment) Regulations 2018 you can apply to Companies House to have your home address removed from:

• The public register, and
• Public documents filed since 2003.

This applies to both active and dissolved companies in the United Kingdom.

Unfortunately, however, you cannot remove a registered office address or SAIL address from your company’s record after incorporation, even if this is your home address.

Understanding the Companies House rules for home addresses

The Companies House rules state that you do not need to use a sensitive address (e.g. your home address) as your company correspondence address, company registered office or company SAIL address. Companies House has a statutory duty to make these addresses public and cannot protect this information from being shown. This is why it is important not to use your home address if you wish to protect your privacy.

But what if you run your business from home? In that case you can use an alternative address, but only if you have permission to do so. Furthermore, the company must be contactable at the given address. Many business owners use a third-party address service provided by a company formation agent for their correspondence. These services provide a physical address where official correspondence can be delivered and forwarded to the company and its owner/s. (Accountants and or solicitors may also offer such address services, but we would recommend that these services are usually better and yet also less expensive when provided by a professional company formation agent, who can also provide you and your company with further relevant services all under one roof,)

Why you should remove your home address from the public register

Removing your home address from the public register can help to protect your privacy and safety. If your home address is listed on the Companies House public register you might be at risk of:

• Unsolicited mail
• Personal security threats and
• Fraud. 

Who can remove their home address from the Companies House public register?

Under the Companies (Disclosure of Address) (Amendment) Regulations 2018 you can remove your home address, or part of it, from the public register if you are or were an:

• Officer, PSC (person with significant control), subscriber or member of a company, LLP, SE or eligible Scottish partnership, or
• Officer or permanent representative of an overseas company.

How to remove your home address from the Companies House public register

To remove your home address from the Companies House public register, complete and submit form SR01 (‘‘Application under section 1088 by an individual to make an address unavailable for public inspection’’). 

You will need to provide the following information on the SR01 form:

• Applicant’s details, including name and address, including any former names
• Date of birth
• Correspondence address to use in relation to the application
• Email address
• Home address to be removed from the public register, and
• New service address to be used instead of your home address. 

Removing your home address from the public register

Using form SR01 part 3, you can ask Companies House to remove your home address from certain documents held on the public register. If you are unsure of which documents show your home address, you can search for your company on the Companies House register and go to ‘‘Filing History’’. You can see every publicly available document and verify which contains your home address.

You will be asked to list the documents that show your home address connected to your name. A fee of £30 must also be paid for each document for which your address must be removed. To see which documents you can remove your home address from, please visit the list of documents on the Companies House website. 

For example, you can apply to have your home address removed from the following documents (this is not exhaustive):

Form name	Form number
Application to register a company	10
Appointment of director or secretary	288a
Change of particulars for director or secretary	288c
Annual return	363a
Annual Return	AR01
Application for registration	IN01
Appointment of a director	AP01
Change of details of a director	CH01
Application by a private company for re-registration as a public company	RR01
Appointment of a secretary	AP03
Change of details of a secretary	CH03
Application by a joint stock company for registration as a public company under the Companies Act 2006	NC IN01
Application by a joint stock company for registration as a private company under the Companies Act 2006	NC IN02
Notice of individual person with significant control (PSC)	PSC01
Change of details of individual person with significant control (PSC)	PSC04

You must provide the company number, company name, document title or filing type and the registration date for each document. 

Submitting Form SR01

Once form SR01 is completed it should be signed and posted to the Registrar of Companies, PO Box 4082, Cardiff, CF14 3WE. Payment can be made by cheque or postal order payable to ‘‘Companies House’’.

Due to the complexity of completing Form SR01, it is much quicker and easier to use the service of a company formation agent such as Uniwide Formations, who can handle the whole process for you.

Do I need to provide a replacement service address if my company is dissolved?

If your company is dissolved then you do not need to provide a new service address (although it is required if the company is only dormant or else is in liquidation). Instead, Companies House will hide part of the home address and only show the first part of your postcode for public inspection. 

If the address is outside the UK then the Companies House will show only the state and/or province and the country.

What happens after you submit Form SR01?

Once Companies House has received your Form SR01 you will receive an acknowledgement letter. Companies House will then review your application and may request additional information. You will typically receive a decision notice within 5 days of application submission.

How can I withhold my address from Credit Reference Agencies in the UK?

If you are a company director or a Person with Significant Control (PSC) then, even if you provide a replacement service address, your home address may still be accessible to credit reference agencies. It may be possible to apply for this information to be withheld, however, if you are at risk of violence because of your company’s activities.

Directors can ask Companies House to withhold their home address from credit reference agencies by applying for a ‘‘Section 243 Exemption’’. PSCs can do likewise by applying for a ‘‘Section 790ZF Exemption’’.

To apply successfully for a section 243 or 790ZF exemption, you will need to provide evidence that you are at genuine risk of harm by providing a police incident number (e.g. if you have been assaulted or attacked) or photos or recordings of a threat or attack. You may also be able to provide evidence that there is a risk of disruption or targeting by activists or by other individuals or groups.

You can request an application form to have your address withheld from credit reference agencies by emailing dsr@companieshouse.gov.uk or phoning 0303 1234 500. You will be asked to explain which exemption you require. You must also pay an application fee of £100 when you submit your application.

Final words

If you are concerned about your privacy because your home address is on the Companies House public register then it is essential to take action. By changing your service address from your home address to one provided by a company formation agency, then filing an SR01 form, you can keep your home address confidential. 

Company formation agents typically offer a registered office address service, which means that you need not use your home address for your company correspondence. Furthermore, due to the complexity of completing Form SR01 and the need to ensure that it is all carried out correctly, it is quicker and easier to ask the company formation agency handle the whole process on your behalf, saving you time and worry. 

Another way to ensure your privacy as a business owner is to treat the security of your company’s online filing authentication code with the same confidentiality as your bank card PIN. Anyone who has access to your code can alter your company’s details online. On top of this, you can also protect your company from unauthorised changes to its records by signing up for the Companies House PROOF (PROtected Online Filing) scheme. This is a way of protecting yourself from corporate identity theft. The service is free and it ensures that unauthorised changes to your records cannot be made, including changes to your registered office address, officers (appointments, resignations or personal details) and company name.