Connect with Licensebox for Business Registration in UK

Check out the eligibility criteria below to know whether you are eligible for business registration in UK:

• The company’s name must be unique and not offensive.
• The company must appoint at least one director.
• The director of a company must be at least 16 years of age.
• At least one appointed director has to be a natural person.
• The company is required to have a registered office address in the UK. If a company is registered in Scotland, its registered address must also be in Scotland. If a company is registered in Wales or English, its address must also be in Wales or England. In case of a Northern Ireland-registered company, the registered address must be in Northern Ireland. 
• A company registered in England can have a Welsh registered address while a company registered in Wales can have an English registered address.
• A minimum of one share must be issued by the company at the time of incorporation.

The process of business registration in the UK involves several key steps. Each step has been discussed below:

Step 1: Choose the Legal Entity

Before applying for business registration, you need to decide on the type of legal entity you want to set up. You can choose from various business structures like limited companies, sole proprietorships, partnerships, and so on, depending on your business requirements.

Step 2: Pick a Name for your Business

After deciding on the type of business structure you want for your company, the next thing you need to do is choose its name. Make sure the name is unique, not offensive to the public, and aligns with the requirements of Companies House. If you need assistance in choosing the right name for your company, get in touch with Licensebox experts.

Step 3: Choose a Registered Office Address

Choosing a registered office address is one of the most important steps in the UK company registration process. Pick the right place, as the registered office will serve as your business’ official address where all the legal documents of the company will be received.

Step 4: Appoint Directors

You must appoint directors and if required, also secretaries of the company. It is necessary to provide information about directors and secretaries to the Companies House. A minimum of one director is required to be appointed before filing business registration with the Companies House.

Step 5: Prepare all the essential documents

You must prepare all the essential documents required for UK company registration such as Memorandum of Association, Articles of Association, etc. All these documents must be presented and signed as an important step of the company registration process.

Step 6: Filing of Registration Application with Companies House

Once you have prepared all the required documents and gathered them, you must file for company registration in the United Kingdom with the Companies House. This step can be completed online. Make sure you mention all the necessary details in the registration form. You’ll be required to pay Company registration UK fee. Once done, wait for the authority’s approval.

Step 7: Grant of Certificate of Incorporation UK

After submitting your company registration application, the Companies House will carefully review your application. If the Companies House is satisfied with the application, it’ll grant you a Certificate of Incorporation UK. After this, you can run your business legally in the UK.

Canada business setup process involves several crucial steps. Each and every step of this process must be completed for successful company incorporation in Canada. You can seek Licensebox for help if required! All the crucial steps for company formation in Canada are discussed below:

Step 1: Choose the Business Model/Company Type

In Canada, there are three basic/common business structures: sole proprietorship, partnership, and corporation. A sole proprietorship is ideal for a small business with one owner. If you want to open a small grocery store, parlor, or bakery, you can go for it. However, all the debts and profits will be your personal responsibility.

A partnership is ideal if you want to start a business in Canada with more than one owner. It may feel similar to sole proprietorship; the only difference is that there’ll be a partner in case of a partnership firm. Just like sole proprietorship, the debts and profits will be the responsibility of owners but they’ll be split between all the owners. Sole proprietorship and partnership are not separate legal entities from their owners. 

If you want your business to have its legal entity, then you can go for a corporation. A corporation is a separate legal entity from its owners and shareholders. The paperwork for corporation registration is more than that for partnership and sole proprietorship. However, the advantage of a corporation over the other two business structures is that it protects individuals from responsibility for debts and liabilities of the company. A corporation must be incorporated federally in Canada. It is required to pay corporate tax as an entity and also requires at least one director. 

Step 2: Decide your Business Name

Deciding the name of your business is an important step in the company formation process in Canada. While choosing a name for your business, make sure that it reflects the services or products you’re planning to offer so that the customers won’t get confused. It is suggested to pick a name that is catchy, easy to pronounce and easy to remember. Make sure the company’s name is unique and distinguishable from other existing companies to avoid legal issues and confusion.

Step 3: Create the Articles of Incorporation

You must create the articles of incorporation to establish the structure of your corporation. You can apply for change later after incorporation if a change in structure is required. All the incorporators must sign these articles. In these articles, you must state the proposed corporation’s name, the corporation’s territory/province in Canada, business activities, share subscription details and any restrictions on share transfers and other crucial information to determine the business structure.

Step 4: Decide how you want to incorporate the business

In this step, you must decide whether to incorporate the business federally or provincially. Federal provinces provide businesses under the same name in all the provinces. This is important if you want to expand your business in other provinces in future, but the Canada company incorporation cost is higher in this case. Provincial incorporation of a company in Canada offers corporate name protection within a specified province. The provincial incorporation is done through the provincial registrar. For an easy Canada business registry, connect with Licensebox.

Step 5: Open a registered office and business bank account

You must open a registered office where business activities and meetings can be held. Additionally, you must open a corporate bank account to receive and send payments.