Director’s service address: Everything you need to know

During company formation, the directors of the new company are required to provide an address through which they can receive official correspondence from the government.

This article will give you insight into the director’s service address and how you can get one.

What is a director’s service address?

A director’s service address is the street address of a real estate property where each individual director of a company can receive official mail from the Companies House, HMRC, the Insolvency Service, the courts, and other government agencies.

Every director appointed before and during company formation must provide an address to the Companies House which is made public on the Companies House website.

A director appointed after company formation or incorporation may, however, need not provide an address.

What are the advantages of having a director’s service address?

The most important advantage of having a service address separate from a residential address is privacy which includes:

• Hide your home address from the Internet, marketers, and the public.
• Avoid having your residential address appear in the public registry.
• Avoid falling prey to identity fraud.
• Avoid unsolicited correspondence from marketing agencies.
• Keep clients or visitors from reaching your home.
• Get a prestigious London business address that will boost your professional image.

Who can use a director’s service address?

The people who can use a director’s service address are the company director(s), members, subscribers, or shareholders, and PSCs (persons with significant control). Company secretaries need not be chosen at the time of company incorporation but if one was chosen, then they’ll need a service address too.

Is it mandatory to have a director’s service address?

It is mandatory for all directors, shareholders, members, subscribers, PSCs, and/or, secretaries appointed at the time of company incorporation in the UK to provide a service address.

This may or may not be the same address as that of the company itself.

What are the differences between a service address and a registered office address?

A service address is an address required to be provided by all directors, shareholders, members, subscribers, PSCs, and/or, secretaries appointed at the time of company incorporation in the UK. The point of presenting such an address is for the receipt of official correspondence from governmental agencies.

On the other hand, a registered office address is the UK address of the main office of the limited company that is intending to incorporate with the Companies House. This address, like the service address, can either be the address of the physical building or a virtual one.

Can a registered office address be used as the director’s service address?

The answer is yes. The main point of having a service address as a director is to maintain privacy. Therefore, using the official address of the company you are directing as your service address is a wise choice.

Can a director’s service address be used as a registered office address?

Yes. It is possible to use the service address of one of the directors of a company as the registered office address of the company. This address will be made public on the Companies House website and registered and also used for receiving any statutory correspondence from government agencies.

Conclusion

The director's service address does not have to be separate from the company’s registered office address.

The only exception is if the director is not based in the UK in which case the service address would definitely be different.