UK Limited Company Formation —
Incorporated Correctly in 24 Hours
Fast, accurate UK limited company incorporation — registered with Companies House within 24 hours. Includes optimal share structure, Memorandum & Articles, PSC register, HMRC Corporation Tax registration and cloud accounting setup. ACCA qualified. From £149.
UK Limited Company Formation — More Than Just Incorporation
Incorporating a UK limited company online takes minutes — but getting it right from day one is far more involved. Share structure, Memorandum & Articles, director appointments, PSC register, HMRC tax registrations and accounting setup all need to be correct from the outset. Errors at formation are expensive and time-consuming to fix.
We incorporate your company with Companies House electronically — most companies appear on the register within 24 hours. Before filing, we advise on the optimal share structure: number and class of shares, shareholder proportions, whether alphabet shares, growth shares or preference shares are appropriate for your situation, and whether a shareholder agreement is needed.
We draft your Memorandum and Articles of Association — the legal constitution of your company — tailored to your business type. Standard articles are fine for most simple companies, but businesses with investors, multiple directors or complex governance need bespoke provisions covering dividend policy, transfer restrictions, drag-along/tag-along rights and dispute resolution.
Following incorporation, we complete all HMRC registrations — Corporation Tax (required within 3 months of starting to trade), PAYE (before the first salary payment) and VAT (immediately if needed, or we track your turnover and notify you when the £90,000 threshold approaches). Your company is fully set up and trading-ready within 5 working days.
✅ What’s Included
- ✓ Companies House name availability check
- ✓ Electronic incorporation — 24 hours
- ✓ Share structure design & advice
- ✓ Memorandum & Articles preparation
- ✓ Director appointments setup
- ✓ PSC register established correctly
- ✓ Statutory registers created
- ✓ Registered address (London EC2M 5TE)
- ✓ HMRC Corporation Tax registration
- ✓ PAYE scheme registration
- ✓ VAT registration (if applicable)
- ✓ Bank introduction (Starling / Tide / Barclays)
- ✓ Xero or QuickBooks setup
- ✓ 30-minute director obligations briefing
- ✓ First-year compliance calendar
Our Process — Clear, Fast & Complete
Which Businesses Need This Service?
First-Time Business Owners
New entrepreneurs who want to trade through a limited company need formation done correctly from day one — share structure, tax registrations, accounting setup and director obligations all handled in one service.
Contractors Setting Up a PSC
Contractors moving from umbrella to personal service company need specialist formation advice — share structure, optimal director salary, IR35 implications and all tax registrations from day one.
Overseas Founders
Non-UK founders incorporating a UK subsidiary or holding company need guidance on director requirements, share structure for overseas investment and UK tax registrations — we serve clients from 30+ countries.
Sole Traders Incorporating
Sole traders incorporating need advice on asset transfer, goodwill valuation, opening balance treatment and the tax implications of the transition — we manage the full change of trading vehicle.
Company Formation — What You Must Know
PSC Register: The Persons with Significant Control register must be established from the date of incorporation and kept up to date. Every person holding more than 25% of shares, voting rights or significant influence must be registered. Failure to maintain an accurate PSC register is a criminal offence. We establish and maintain your PSC register from day one.
4 Costly Mistakes — And How We Prevent Them
Many founders incorporate with a simple 50/50 split without considering whether different share classes (for dividends, voting or capital distribution) would be advantageous. Changing share structure after incorporation requires reorganisation and potentially HMRC clearance. We advise on optimal structure — including alphabet shares and growth shares — before filing.
HMRC requires Corporation Tax registration within 3 months of starting to trade. Late registration creates a penalty and a period of unregistered trading that HMRC will assess. We register for all applicable taxes within 5 working days of incorporation.
Your registered address is publicly available on Companies House and receives significant official correspondence. Using a personal home address exposes it permanently to the public register. We provide our London EC2M 5TE address for all formation clients.
Every transaction from the first day of trading must be in an accounting system. Reconstructing historical records is time-consuming and expensive. We set up cloud accounting software — Xero or QuickBooks — as part of every formation package.
UK Limited Company Formation — Your Questions Answered
Electronic incorporation with Companies House typically takes 24 hours for standard filings (same-day service is available for an additional £50 fee). HMRC Corporation Tax registration takes 2-3 weeks. PAYE registration takes 2-5 working days. VAT registration currently takes 30-40 working days — which is why early registration is important if you expect to need a VAT number quickly.
There is no minimum share capital requirement for a UK private limited company. Most are formed with a nominal share capital of £1-£100 (commonly 100 shares at £1 each). The nominal value has no direct relationship to the company’s market value. We advise on the appropriate share structure for your specific situation before incorporation.
A shareholder agreement is not legally required but is strongly recommended for any company with two or more shareholders. Standard Articles provide a basic framework, but a shareholder agreement covers minority shareholder protection, dividend policy, pre-emption rights on share transfers, death and incapacity, exit mechanisms and dispute resolution. We provide a template agreement as part of our formation service.
Yes — but we strongly recommend against it. Your registered address is publicly available on Companies House permanently and will receive volumes of official correspondence. Our London EC2M 5TE registered address keeps your personal address private and provides a professional City of London presence.
Key ongoing obligations: file annual accounts with Companies House (9 months after year-end), file CT600 with HMRC (12 months), pay Corporation Tax (9 months and 1 day), file annual confirmation statement (within 14 days of review date), maintain statutory registers, and notify Companies House of any changes within 14 days. We handle all of these for every Britvex client.
Fixed Fees — Agreed Upfront, No Surprises
Every fee is fixed and agreed before we start work. No hourly rates, no surprise invoices. Book a free consultation for your exact quote.
All packages include: dedicated account manager · HMRC & Companies House agent · client portal access · 2-hour response guarantee.
Complete Your Business Package
Company Formation — Up & Running in 24 Hours
Book a free consultation and we’ll incorporate your company, complete all registrations and have your accounting live — from £149, typically within 5 working days.