How to Register a UK Company as a Non-Resident: Step-by-Step Guide (2026)

Registering a UK limited company as a non-resident takes 24 hours and starts from $299 in formation cost. The process is fully remote. No UK address, no UK bank account, no UK visit required before you start. And the resulting entity is one of the most commercially credible structures available to a global founder.

But the process has specific steps that trip up non-residents, particularly around identity verification under the UK’s Economic Crime Act, the registered office requirement, and what happens in the 14 days after incorporation when your UTR arrives. This guide covers every step, in the exact order you need to complete it.

Written from the experience of helping 150+ founders form UK LTDs from all around the world, without a single trip to London.

Can a non-UK resident register a UK LTD?

Yes, fully. There is no requirement for any director, shareholder, or person with significant control (PSC) to be a UK citizen or UK resident. You can be based in Bangladesh, India, UAE, Nigeria, or anywhere else in the world and register a UK LTD without a UK visa, UK bank account, or UK visit.

The UK Companies Act 2006 allows foreign nationals to incorporate and operate UK private limited companies. The only UK-based requirement is a registered office address, but this can be fulfilled by a registered office service, not by you personally.

Requirement	Non-resident position
UK citizenship or residency	Not required. Any nationality is fine
UK visa	Not required for registration, only if you physically visit the UK for business
UK bank account	Not required before registration. Open after incorporation
Physical UK presence	Not required. The entire process is remote
UK registered office address	Required. Fulfilled by a registered office service or formation agent
Identity verification	Required. Completed remotely via a formation agent under the Economic Crime Act
Minimum share capital	£1, or even lower. No minimum threshold
Minimum age	16 years old for directors

What you need before starting, the pre-registration checklist

Have all of this ready before you sit down to fill in the Companies House application. The application itself is fast. The preparation takes longer.

Step 1: Choose and check your company name

Your company name must be unique, must end in Limited or Ltd, and must not contain restricted or sensitive words without permission. This is the step most founders rush, and the one that causes the most delays.

Name availability check

Search your proposed name on the Companies House company name availability checker. An exact match, or a name deemed too similar to an existing company, will be rejected. Too similar includes swapping Ltd for Limited, adding The at the start, or using common punctuation variants.

Restricted and sensitive words

• Restricted words requiring approval: British, National, Royal, International, Group, Association, Institute
• Sensitive words requiring evidence: Bank, Insurance, Trust, University, Charity
• Words implying a government connection are prohibited without explicit authorisation

Trademark check

A name that is available on Companies House can still infringe a registered trademark. Run a quick search on the UK Intellectual Property Office trademark database before committing. For international founders building a brand, this check is not optional.

Step 2: Set up a UK registered office address

Every UK LTD must have a registered office, a physical UK address that can receive official correspondence from HMRC, Companies House, and courts. As a non-resident, you cannot use your home country address. Your options are:

Option	Cost	Best for
Formation agent registered office	$30 to $100 per year	Most non-residents. Often included in formation packages
Virtual office service	$100 to $300 per year	Founders wanting a prestigious UK address and mail scanning
UK friend, family, or contact	Free	If you have a trusted UK-based contact. Note it becomes public
Solicitor or accountant address	$100 to $300 per year	Founders with an existing UK professional relationship

The registered office address becomes publicly visible on Companies House. It does not need to be a place where you actually work. It only needs to be a UK address that can receive and forward official mail. For most non-residents, the formation agent’s address is the standard and most practical option.

Step 3: Prepare your director and shareholder information

You’ll need to provide the following for each director and each shareholder (PSC). As the sole founder, you typically fill this in once, for yourself.

Director information required

• Full legal name, exactly as on passport
• Date of birth. Month and year are shown publicly. The full date is held by Companies House
• Nationality
• Country of residence
• Service address. You can use the company’s registered office address to keep your home address private
• Residential address. Required by Companies House but can be kept private if you use a service address
• Occupation

Shareholder / PSC information required

• Full legal name
• Address
• Nature of control, for example owning more than 25 percent of shares or holding voting rights
• Number of shares held and share class (Ordinary is standard)
• Date became a PSC

Share structure for non-resident sole founders

For a single founder company, the simplest and most common structure is:

• One class of shares: Ordinary shares
• 100 shares issued at £0.01 each, total paid-up capital £1.00
• All 100 shares held by you, giving you 100 percent ownership

Step 4: Choose your SIC code

A Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) code describes what your business does. Companies House uses it for statistical classification. It does not affect your taxes or legal status. You can list up to four SIC codes, and you can change them later via a confirmation statement. Find the full list at the Companies House SIC code reference.

Business type	SIC code	Description
Software / app development	62012	Business and domestic software development
Digital marketing agency	73110	Advertising agencies
Management consulting	70229	Management consultancy activities not elsewhere classified
E-commerce / online retail	47910	Retail sale via mail order houses or via internet
IT consulting	62020	Information technology consultancy activities
Content creation / media	59200	Sound recording and music publishing activities
Financial services (general)	64999	Other financial service activities except insurance and pension funding
Recruitment / HR	78109	Other activities of employment placement agencies

Step 5: Complete identity verification under the Economic Crime Act

This is the step that changed most significantly in 2024 and 2025. Under the UK Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act, Companies House now requires identity verification for all directors and persons with significant control (PSCs) at or shortly after incorporation.

What identity verification involves

• Photo ID, your valid passport (preferred) or national identity card
• A facial recognition check, a live selfie matched to your ID document
• Completed either directly through Companies House’s system or via an Authorised Corporate Service Provider (ACSP) such as a formation agent

How non-residents complete identity verification

Non-residents cannot always complete the Companies House direct ID verification if their document is not supported by the system. The practical route is to use a formation agent. Rocket Wave and similar services are registered as ACSPs and complete identity verification on your behalf as part of the formation process.

Step 6: Submit to Companies House

Once all information is ready and identity verification is arranged, submission takes roughly 15 to 30 minutes. You have two routes.

Route	Process	Best for
Direct via Companies House Web Incorporation Service	Submit form IN01 directly at companieshouse.gov.uk for a small government fee	Founders confident in the process who want to save cost
Via a formation agent, recommended for non-residents	The agent prepares and submits everything, including registered office, ID verification, and post-incorporation documents, starting from $299 with Rocket Wave	Non-residents who want everything handled and documents verified

What the application covers

• Company name
• Registered office address
• Director details
• Shareholder and PSC details
• Share structure
• SIC code or codes
• Memorandum of association, a short statement of intent to incorporate
• Articles of association. Model articles are selected by default and are appropriate for most companies

After submission

Companies House reviews and incorporates within 24 hours for online submissions during business days. You receive your Certificate of Incorporation by email, typically a PDF containing your company number and the date of incorporation. This is your proof that your company legally exists.

Step 7: After incorporation, what arrives and when

Incorporation is not the end. It is the beginning of a 14-day waiting period during which several important things happen automatically.

Item	When it arrives	What to do
Certificate of Incorporation	Within 24 hours of incorporation, by email	Save securely. You will need this for bank applications, Stripe, and investor due diligence
Memorandum and Articles of Association	Included with the Certificate	Save securely. Banks and some clients may request a copy
Share certificates	Issued by you or your formation agent after incorporation	Issue and sign. Keep on file
UTR (Unique Taxpayer Reference)	7 to 14 days, posted by HMRC to the registered office	Forward to your accountant. Required for corporation tax filing
HMRC new company letter	7 to 14 days, posted to the registered office	Confirms your company is registered for corporation tax. Keep on file
Companies House reminder (optional)	Annually, ahead of your confirmation statement due date	Set a calendar reminder immediately

Step 8: Your first 30 days after incorporation

Once your Certificate of Incorporation arrives, you have a clear sequence to follow in your first 30 days. Skipping or reordering these creates friction later.

Frequently asked questions