Forming a limited company – overview of Form IN01

To form a limited company in the UK, you must complete Form IN01. In this article, we look at the information Form IN01 captures, and how this information is used by Companies House.

However you physically form your comapny, on your own or via a third party, three documents must be sent to Companies House; Form IN01, and a copy of your Articles of Association and a Memorandum of Association.

Here, we take a look at Form IN01, the application to register a company.

Form IN01

Since the implementation of the Companies Act 2006, this application form must be used by anyone wanting to set up a new limited company.

The following information is captured by Form IN01:

1. Company Details

• Your proposed company name (clearly, you must check online to see if your proposed name is available first)

• Type of limited company (private limited by shares / guarantee, private unlimited, or PLC).

• Where the registered office will be located (England & Wales, Wales, Scotland or Northern Ireland).

• The registered office address.

• The type of Articles of Association you wish to include with your application (‘model articles’ or bespoke articles).

2. Company Officers

When entering the details of the company officers, you can provide a ‘service address’, which is the address which will appear on the public record if you don’t want your residential address to be published.

The service address must be a real address, whether it be a serviced office provider, or your accountant’s address.

• Your company secretary’s name and address (since the implementation of the Companies Act 2006, you are not longer obliged to appoint a secretary if you don’t wish to).

• Directors’ names and service addresses

• Directors’ residential addresses (although these will not appear on the public record).

3. Statement of Capital

This should only be completed if your company has share capital – this applies to the vast majority of businesses.

• Details of the share capital (including the class of shares issued, amount paid/unpaid on each share, the number of shares issued, and the total nominal value of all shares issued).

• The rights associated with each class of share (any voting, or other rights which are held – e.g. to participate in a dividend distribution).

• Initial Shareholdings (the name and address of all initial subscribers, including the class of share they have subscribed to. You do not need to use usual residential addresses if you prefer).

4. Statement of Guarantee

This section should only be completed if your company is limited by guarantee.

Members confirm that they will contribute a maximum amount to the assets of the company should it be wound up in the future.

5. Statement of Compliance

All subscribers must complete this section to confirm that the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 have been complied with. If you are forming a company via a third party, such as a formations agent, they will sign on your behalf.

Further Information

You can download a PDF version of Companies House Form IN01 from the Gov.uk website here.