- It is a legal requirement for company directors, PSCs, secretaries, and LLP members to ensure they have a designated location to receive statutory mail and official communications from government bodies like Companies House and HMRC.
- Using a separate service address keeps your home address off the public register and helps protect your privacy.
What Is a Director Service Address?
A director service address, or a correspondence or director mailing address, is a specific location designated for receiving statutory correspondence from UK government regulatory agencies such as HMRC and Companies House. It is the official address all company directors must have when appointed to a limited company’s directorship during or after incorporation.
It is the official channel through which important documents and communications related to directorial roles and responsibilities are received.
Government agencies use the address to keep company directors and other officials informed about legal and regulatory matters, facilitating compliance with various obligations.
Any full postal address in the UK or abroad can be used as a service address, except PO Box Numbers.
Your service address does not need to be the business premises where you operate or meet clients.
Can I use a virtual office service for my director address?
You can use a virtual office service to find your director’s address, but many providers, such as Your Company Formations, offer these services separately. We do this because our virtual address service primarily provides professional business address and administrative support, such as mail handling, call forwarding, and meeting room facilities.
The service is not structured to handle the specific requirements of statutory letters and official correspondence from government agencies, which are crucial aspects of director address services. Statutory letters often require specialised handling and compliance procedures to meet legal and regulatory obligations accurately and promptly.
However, you can use Your Company Formations virtual address as your business address service.
How to Change my director address service with Companies House?
Your service address can be changed at any time.
Notify Companies House as soon as possible of the change of address using form CH02 or CH01 for a corporate and natural director of a UK company, respectively, or form LLCH01 or LLCH02 for LLPs as applicable.
You can print and manually complete the form and post it back to Companies House, or you can complete it to be filed online via WebFiling.
Can I Use My Home Address as My Director Service Address?
Yes. You can use your home address as your director service address. You can also use another residential or non-residential address, your accountant’s office, a professional service address from a company formation agent, or the company’s registered office address.
However, remember that your director service address will be publicly available on the Companies House register, so it is important to consider privacy and security concerns.
To reduce privacy and security risks, keep company officers’ home addresses off the public register where possible. We recommend using a separate service address for statutory purposes to avoid exposing your residential address publicly.
Director Service Address vs Registered Office Address vs Business Address
A director service address, registered office address, and business address serve different purposes. A director service address may also be called a correspondence address, as it is used for official correspondence sent to a company director.
| Address Type | Belongs To | Used For | On Public Register? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Director service address | The director (a person) | Statutory mail to the director personally | Yes |
| Registered office address | The company | Official company mail from Companies House and HMRC | Yes |
| Business/trading address | The company | Day-to-day trading and customer contact | No (optional) |
A director service address is linked to the individual company officer, while the registered office belongs to the company itself. A business or trading address is used for everyday correspondence with customers, suppliers, and other business contacts.
The same physical address may sometimes be used for more than one purpose, but each address has a different role and mail-handling requirement.
During the company formation process, all company officials, including the initial subscribers (shareholders), are required to provide two contact addresses: their residential address and an official statutory address. The residential address is kept private and is not publicly available, while the statutory address details are disclosed and accessible to the public. Shareholders who acquire company shares after the formation process are not required to provide a statutory address.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does a director service address have to be in the UK?
It can be anywhere in the world, but a UK address is usually best for receiving statutory mail quickly and reliably.
Is a director service address the same as a correspondence address?
Yes – “service address” and “correspondence address” mean the same thing on the Companies House register.
Can I change my director service address later?
Yes, at any time and for free, by filing a change of director’s details with Companies House.
Does my director service address have to be in the UK?
No. A director service address can be anywhere in the world, provided it is a valid address for receiving official correspondence.
Can I use your director service address product for Persons with Significant Control, Company secretaries, or other company officials?
Yes. The directors’ service address product is designed to receive statutory letters for all company officials, as required by law, with our service. You can purchase the address of each official company.
Do I need a business address service at the point of company formation?
No. You need a registered office address and service addresses for company officials. A separate business address is optional.
Can I use my central London business address as my director service address?
Yes. You can use a London business address as your director service address, provided it can receive official correspondence for you.
HI,
I hope this message finds you well.
I am in the process of forming a limited company and plan to appoint myself as the director. However, I currently reside at a rented property, and I am unsure whether my landlord would permit the use of my residential address as the director’s service address.
I intend to use a separate business address for the company itself, but I would like to ask:
Is it mandatory to use my residential address as the director’s service address?
Can I use your director address service or another professional address as my director service address to maintain privacy and avoid any issues with my landlord?
Your guidance on this matter would be greatly appreciated.
Kind regards,
No. It is not mandatory to use your home address as your director service address. Companies House requires two addresses: your residential address (used privately for identity checks) and a service address, which will be publicly available and may or may not be your residential address for privacy.