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Electronic filings at Companies House

Due to the COV-19 outbreak and with more people working from home, Companies House is encouraging companies to use electronic filings where possible. A full list of documents you can currently submit online to Companies House can be found here.

14 April 2020

Please note: the information contained in our legal updates are correct as of the original date of publication.

Due to the COV-19 outbreak and with more people working from home, Companies House is encouraging companies to use electronic filings where possible. A full list of documents you can currently submit online to Companies House can be found here.

To use their online WebFiling service, you will need a company authentication code. This is a 6 digit alphanumeric code issued by Companies House to each company. The code is used to authorise information filed online and is the equivalent of a company officer’s signature.

If your company was formed directly with Companies House, your code will have been mailed to your registered office a few weeks after incorporation. This code will not be displayed anywhere so if you have misplaced it you will need to request a new code from Companies House using the link here. 

It will then be sent by post to your company’s registered office and can take up to 5 days to arrive. Do not wait until you’re due to file to request your code and risk it being too late. Because of the high volumes of post, delivery could take longer than usual during these busy periods.

If you do not have a Companies House password and authentication code, you can register online for the WebFiling service using the link here, or use software filing packages to send information through the online XML gateway.

Please note that Companies House are still accepting documents by post, but it is currently taking them approximately 24-48 hours to process online filings and 2 weeks for paper filings. Please factor in this delay when you are considering your method of submission, and also consider that it may be cheaper to file certain documents online.

Full guidance on online filing can be found here

Co-authored by Jaspreet Sangra and Rachael McDonald.

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