How to change a company director in the UK

If you have set up a Limited Liability Company (LTD) in the UK, there may be one or more directors. As a result, you may need to know how to change a company director in the UK.

We are going to explain it to you, and note that, like almost everything else in the UK, it is a fairly simple process and can be done 100% online.

What is a director?

A company director in the UK is the person who is legally in charge of the company and responsible for managing it. It makes decisions, signs official documents and ensures that the company complies with the law.

The law does not say how many directors there must be in an LTD, but it does state that there must be at least one. It is also possible for the director and the shareholder to be the same person. That is very common in small or founder-owned companies.

Reasons for changing of company director in the UK

There are many, but we will try to outline the most common ones here. For example, the director could resign and leave the company, so the board needs to be reshuffled.

Your company may be going very well and you may be looking for a new person to join the board. Or you may want to take on that role yourself.

Whatever the reason, the important thing is to notify the change to Companies House.

Steps to change a company director in the UK

Firstly, as we have recommended for all aspects of your UK business, you need to have all the necessary information gathered beforehand.

You will need to know the new director‘s first and last name, address (which does not have to be in the UK). ALso, the date of birth, nationality and job title. You will also need an address for notifications.

All this information will be public information on the company’s register, so a virtual address would help to preserve privacy.

Connect to the Companies House portal

You can use the free Companies House online service at https://www.gov.uk/file-changes-to-a-company. Another good option to simplify the process is through your manager.

You will need to log in with your company details and have your authentication code ready. This code is provided to you by Companies House when you register your company.

Once logged in, select the ‘Add a Director’ option. When you have finished filling in all the details, confirm them and the change will normally be reflected in a matter of hours.

As a note, remember that if you are replacing that director, you must go to the ‘Remove a Director’ option and follow the same process. You cannot remove the one director without first adding a new one, it must have always at least one director active.

Update the official internal records

As an official register, you must also update the company’s book of directors on the Companies House website. Remember that all details relating to your company must be reported here.

Costs on how to change a company director in the UK

Managing a change of company director in the UK is completely free of charge. Only if you choose to do it through your manager or through an app will you have to pay a fee.

What if... You don’t update it?

That’s a problem. If you don’t officially notify the Companies House, you’re not complying with UK laws. It can also cause issues with banks, legal documents, and public records.

And finally

Don’t forget that it is a legal requirement to notify the change of a company director in the UK. If you fail to do so, both Companies House and the banks could report you.

The information that appears related to a company is public. If the data is incorrect or out of date, it can be detrimental to those people or companies that are looking for information about your company. In the UK they take this kind of detail very seriously and you cannot afford to fail in managing the change of your company details.