Common mistakes non-residents make when forming a UK company

Using a cheap or unmanaged registered office address means missed HMRC and Companies House letters, including the corporation tax UTR and strike off warnings, and can end with a company being dissolved without the owner realising anything was wrong. Always confirm the provider actually opens or forwards post.

Picking a vague SIC code, or one that does not match the real business, is a frequent reason bank applications are delayed or declined, since providers use it for automated risk scoring. Equally, issuing an awkward number of shares early on makes later co-founder or investor arrangements more complicated than they need to be.

Incorporating without first thinking through where the company will be managed from is the costliest mistake: if all board decisions are genuinely made from abroad, the company can become tax resident in your home country too, under central management and control tests, exposing the same profit to two tax systems before relief.

Applying to a bank without a clear, specific description of the business, evidence of UK activity such as contracts or a website, and an honest answer on expected transaction volumes leads to unnecessary declines. Preparing this evidence before applying, rather than reacting to a rejection, saves weeks.

Our fixed monthly packages for a UK limited company start at £89 plus VAT and run to £169 and £289 plus VAT as bookkeeping, VAT, payroll and reporting are added. One-off filings are sold at fixed prices, and the Companies House fees we pay for you are charged at cost with no VAT added. Overseas owners are quoted on exactly the same published prices as UK-resident clients.

Rates, thresholds and deadlines here reflect the 2026/27 UK position and current Companies House and HMRC guidance. Check GOV.UK, or ask us, before relying on them for your own company.