Companies Act - New rules for limited company directors from 1st October 2009

Limited company owners should be aware of the latest raft of Companies Act changes, which take effect from 1st October 2009.
Previous legislative amendments bought in as a result of the Act included making the company secretary role an optional appointment.

Most of these latest changes, which represent the main implementation of the Act, may not directly affect many small business owners, however the following changes are likely to be relevant to existing (or prospective) limited company directors:

Key Companies Act Changes from 1st October 2009

1. The Registrar of Companies will gain more powers - mainly revolving around the processing of information submitted by, or concerning, the UK's companies.

2. Form changes - some of the Companies House forms currently used by limited companies may be replaced, or changed.

3. The actual incorporation process is set to become simpler as a result of the Act. A new Form IN01 will be required to form a company, together with a Memorandum of Association, the Articles of Association, and the appropriate fee.

4. Authorised / nominal share capital will be discontinued on incorporation.

5. There will no longer be a limit set out in the Memorandum of Association on the number of shares that directors can issue.

6. Company naming rules are set to become stricter.

7. Directors must now provide a "service address", alongside their residential address (although these may both be the same). This means that a director's private address will no longer appear on any public register if they have a different "service address".

8. Statement of Capital - Companies incorporating as limited by shares (whether private or public) on or after 1st October 2009 must complete a statement of capital and initial shareholdings as part of the application to incorporate.

9. New rules regarding a limited company's constitutional documents (including the Memorandum and Articles of Association)

You can find out more about these and the other 1st October 2009 changes at Companies House.

www.ukba.co.uk