A Certificate of Good Standing is an official document from Companies House that a business can obtain to demonstrate that it is up to date with all legal filings. Having this Certificate is useful in a variety of circumstances as a sign to businesses and individuals that your business is trustworthy and reliable.
Requesting your Certificate
Both private and public limited companies can request a Certificate of Good Standing as long as they meet a couple of basic requirements:
- They must be up to date with their legal filings and in good standing with Companies House.
- Public limited companies must have a secretary and two directors (one of whom is a ‘natural person’).
- Private limited companies must have at least one director who is a ‘natural person’.
As long as your business meets those basic requirements, you can request for your Certificate to be sent to you or made available for collection.
By going through Companies House, you can make a standard order (£15), which will see your order processed in 4 working days), or a same day order (£50), which makes your order go through on the same working day. The same day requests also allow you to access an instant fax or PDF of the Certificate if you want it. However, a paper copy will carry more weight, as only these copies have an official signature from someone at Companies House.
Features of the Certificate
The Certificate can contain several pieces of official information, depending on what your company requires:
- The name of the director(s).
- Additional details about the director, e.g. nationality.
- The name of the secretary (if the business is public).
- Registered company address.
- The company’s objects (if the business was incorporated after 2009, it’s unlikely to have stated objects).
- Statement of good standing.
The good standing statement is the most important piece of information on the Certificate. It certifies that the business has been in continuous existence since its incorporation, and that there is no action being taken against the company.
Why you might need a Certificate
A Certificate is a useful, and sometimes essential, document when you’re dealing with other organisations. In the UK, you might need a Certificate if you’re trying to open a bank account for the company, and it can be a helpful trust signal for potential investors and lenders.
It also has potential use overseas if you are trying to do business or set up a branch in another country. In this instance, the Certificate will assure overseas authorities that your company is timely with its legal documentation, and isn’t going to cause them any problems.
Using the Certificate in other countries
If you want to use the Certificate of Good Standing overseas, the document alone is not enough. It first needs to be legalised with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO). This legalisation gives the Certificate the same legal weighting that it has in the UK.
If the only copy that you have of the Certificate is digital, then you won’t be able to get it legalised. In order for the FCO to legalise a Companies House document, it needs to have the signature or seal of a British public official. A paper copy of the Certificate will have been signed by a Companies House official, which is why you need the hard copy for the legalisation.
Once the Certificate has been approved by the FCO, you will be able to use it as effectively abroad as you can in the UK.
published under Business Address Guides
