Legal requirements for stationery
of companies registered with Companies House

Companies... |... Limited Liability partnership (LLP)

Companies

A company must disclose its name (as it appears in its memorandum of association) at its
registered and sometimes other offices and on its communications. A company must also give
other specified information on all its business letters, order forms and websites.

Where and how must I display the company name?
A company must display its name:

• at its registered office and at the place where it keeps its company records for inspection.
  From 1 October 2008 this requirement will not apply to a dormant company if it has at all
  times since its incorporation been dormant i.e. it has “no significant accounting transactions”
  during a financial year or entries in the company's accounting records. Please refer to our
  Dormant Companies’ guidance at www.companieshouse.gov.uk;
• at any other place at which it carries on business. From 1 October 2008 this requirement
  will not apply if the location is used primarily for living accommodation, for example, if it is
  the director’s home;
• on all its business correspondence and documentation (in hard copy, electronic or any
  other form), including:
  • the company's business letters and order forms;
  • bills of exchange, promissory notes, endorsements, cheques and orders for money
    or goods purporting to be signed by, or on behalf of, the company;
  • bills of parcels, invoices, receipts and letters of credit; and
  • its websites.

Please refer to The Companies (Trading Disclosure) Regulations 2008
(Statutory Instrument 2008/495).

The name must be in characters that can be read with the naked eye and be displayed
continuously. From 1 October 2008, where the office, place or location is shared by six or more
companies, each company is only required to display its registered name for at least fifteen
continuous seconds at least once in every three minutes (this is to allow electrical displays with
alternating names).

Must I show any other company details?
Yes. On all company’s business letters, order forms (in hard copy, electronic or any other form)
and its websites, the company must show in legible lettering:

• the part of the United Kingdom in which the company is registered which is:
  • For Companies registered in England and Wales either:
    Registered in Cardiff
    Registered in England and Wales
    Registered in England
    Registered in London
    Registered in Wales
  • For Companies registered in Scotland:
    Registered in Scotland
    Registered in Edinburgh
• the company’s registered number;
• the address of the company’s registered office.

If a business letter, order form or any of the company’s websites includes mentions more than
one address, you should state which address is the registered office.

• in the case of a limited company exempt from using the word 'limited', the fact that it is
  a limited company;
• in the case of a community interest company which is not a public company, the fact that
  it is a limited company;
• if it is an investment company as defined by section 833 of the Companies Act 2006,
  the fact that it is this type of company;
• for a company with share capital, it is not necessary to state the share capital on stationery
  but, if the company chooses to do so, it must state its paid-up capital.

Do I have to display directors' names?
A company does not have to state the directors' names on its business letters, however, if it
chooses to do so, it must state the names of all its directors. In other words, a company cannot
be selective about which directors' names it shows - it must show all of them or none of them.

Are there special rules for charitable companies?
Section 68 of the Charities Act 1993 provides that a charitable company whose name does not
include the word 'charity' or 'charitable' must state that it is a charity on company documents,
including business letters, notices, invoices, bills of exchange, promissory notes and on any
conveyances it executes. The relevant legislation in Scotland is the Charities and Trustee
Investment (Scotland) Act 2005.

Do the rules apply to oversea companies?
A company formed outside Great Britain which opens a branch or place of business in
Great Britain must register with Companies House and must publicly display similar details
to those set out in this chapter. Our 'Oversea Companies’ guidance gives full details at
www.companieshouse.gov.uk.

Source www.companieshouse.gov.uk