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Introduction
What are the statutory books of accounts or statutory registers for a UK limited company contractor? When you incorporate a private company for contracting in the UK, Companies House will give it a unique company registration number. As part of the incorporation, the company will receive its company registry documents. Basically, these include the Companies House Certificate of Incorporation, Memorandum, and Articles of Association. Besides these official documents, your UK contractor limited company should also keep and maintain some company statutory records. What’s more, these contractor statutory register books should be kept safe as they contain important company documents.
When you run your own company, one of your duties is to keep good and accurate UK company records. A company’s statutory registers are part of this and you should maintain these and keep them up to date. However, in many smaller businesses the company’s accountant will look after these records. When there are official company changes, such as a change of director or share ownership, your or your accountant should make the relevant company registry update to record the change.
Initial thoughts
First thoughts
What are statutory registers of the company for UK contracting professionals? Basically, when we consider the statutory registers meaning, all UK companies must keep statutory books and records. Indeed, your own company will have company registers for these records too. Furthermore, UK companies registers will include your own company statutory documents and this will contain the relevant information which you also report on the Annual Confirmation Statement which in turn is shown on the Companies House register.
When you run your own company, you will usually keep the records in a hard binder. In addition, you will also keep these in a safe place.
Therefore, you or your contractor accountant must maintain and keep the company statutory registers (UK) up to date. In most cases, your accountant will take your mind off this and look after this for you.
Common questions
Some common questions and thoughts from business owners in relation to their statutory records may include:
- What are statutory books for a company?
- What is a statutory register?
- How to run a limited company book?
- What are company books?
- What statutory registers must a company keep?
In this guide, we’ll take a look into all of the above and find out what you need to do as a contractor and UK limited company owner.
Limited company register book -what does the statutory register include?
The company registers (UK) are also known as the company books and records or, in the case of a UK contractor, the contractor books. Basically, the company register or your contractor book will contain various registers the main ones of which are people registers and share registers. Indeed, the Statutory Registers Companies Act 2006 states the statutory records to be maintained by a company. Therefore, the company records (UK) and list of statutory registers which a company keeps and maintains must comply with this. Further still, we will go over the list of statutory registers required by law next.
Contractor statutory registers -part one
First within the list of company statutory books (UK), there is a register of charges (only for companies set up before 6 April 2013). This register shows any charges against the company. A Companies House charge will include any mortgages and secured loans. Since 6 April 2013, the Companies Act 2006 no longer requires a company to maintain a statutory register of charges. Therefore, companies who set up after this date do not need to keep this register.
When registering a charge at Companies House, this must be made at Companies House within 21 days beginning with the day after the day on which the charge is created. Furthermore, any interested party can register a charge at Companies House, including the lender, or the lender’s agent or even the company itself.
Second within the list of statutory books of a company there is a register of applications and allotments. This share register (UK) shows the allotment of any shares in the company. In addition, the register of allotments will show each of the share allotments and it also shows the class of shares. Furthermore, it will show the number of shares and the amounts paid for them.
Third within the stat books, there is a register of the transfer of shares. This UK share register will show a list of the transfer of shares. It will also show the class shares, the number of shares, and the amounts paid.
Part two
Fourth within the statutory documents of a company, there is a register of directors and secretaries, register of persons or register of people. Basically, this statutory record will contain details of directors and secretaries, however, in some companies, these are separate. Therefore, for this fourth point, there is a register of directors (see the fifth point for secretaries). This register shows the name and address of each director in the company. The address that you list is the director’s service address. There is no need to list the director’s residential address because although Companies House does need this information, they do not show this on the public register. The register of directors (UK) also shows their date of birth, nationality, and occupation.
Fifth, as part of the statutory records, there is a register of secretaries. This register shows the name and address of the company secretary. Following the introduction of the Companies Act 2006, this is now no longer a requirement for small companies.
Sixth within the statutory books of a company, there is a company register of members (UK) and this a list of the company’s shareholders. However, what is a register of members and what information does it include? Basically, the statutory register of members is a shares register will include the name and address of each shareholder. In addition, the shareholder register (UK) will also show the date each member became a shareholder or ceased ownership. Moreover, the shareholder register book will show each share transaction with each shareholder (allotments and transfers) and the classes of shares involved.
Part three
Seventh within the statutory books of a company, there is a register of directors’ interests. This statutory record will show the names and addresses of each director. It will also show the details of the shares that they own and any they have an interest in. This will include any shares their spouse owns (if their spouse is not already a director in their own right). What’s more, this will also contain the shares held by any of their children under 18.
Eighth and final in the list of company registers is a register of PSCs. This stands for People with Significant Control. The PSC register will show their name, service address and how they control the company. The requirement to report PSCs became law in April 2016, aiming to make UK companies’ ownership more transparent. list of company registers
Part four
There may also be a separate register of directors’ residential addresses. This statutory record would list the directors’ home addresses of each director you appoint to help run the business.
There is also a section in the statutory books of a company that contains any shareholder resolutions. These are agreements or decisions which are made by the members of a company. A company will pass the resolutions at either a general meeting of the shareholders or by a written resolution procedure.
Finally, a company will record minutes when there are board of director meetings. These include any important matters discussed at the meetings. Basically, the meeting minutes are often kept within a section at the back of the official company registers.
Non statutory registers
In addition to the statutory records, there are also some non-statutory registers. These include a register of allotments and a register of transfers. Although these are not required by law, they do help to keep the shareholder lists etc up to date throughout the year.
What else should think about?
Where do you keep the statutory registers?
Companies House will assume you keep your contractor statutory books and registers at the company’s registered office. If you prefer, you can keep these at a SAIL address. The Companies House SAIL address stands for a Single Alternative Inspection Location.
The location where the company’s statutory records are kept is shown in the registers. This location is where the documents are available for public inspection, and therefore it is where a third party could undertake the task of inspecting the records.
You can keep digital copies of your company’s stat register or both digital documents and paper versions if you wish.
Statutory registers -a valid legal entity
The statutory registers will also prove that the company is a valid legal entity.
They show who owns the shares, who the company’s officials are and who controls the company.
Shareholder right to inspect books and records (UK)
As a shareholder in a company, one of your rights is to have your name correctly inserted in the company register of members. In addition, you also have the right to inspect and obtain copies of several company documents, records and registers. However, this is on the basis that reasonable notice has been given. Furthermore, members can inspect the documents free of charge.
Other considerations
Confirmation Statement
Every 12 months, each UK company needs to file both company accounts and a Confirmation Statement (CS) with Companies House. The CS reports any changes in the statutory details of the company in the previous 12 months, and when you file this, it updates the register at Companies House.
Therefore, the details shown in the registers should agree with what details which you report on the CS form.
Sell your company
If there comes a time when you decide to sell your company, you will need to ensure that the statutory records are up to date. In addition, if you consider selling your business in the future, it will give you peace of mind if your registers are up-to-date and accurate. Failing to do this may cause you a headache when you come to sell, and it could hold up any sale as you would then need to recreate these records from scratch.
Final thoughts
In this guide, we’ve taken the time to consider what are statutory records for your UK company. As we mention earlier, UK contractors will usually ask their accountant to keep and update the company’s statutory registers. This saves limited company contractors from the task of having to consider the company’s statutory register. Year after year, the statutory book (contractor books in terms of statutory information) will only need updating if there have been any changes in the details of the business.
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