Set up a limited company, structured to save tax from day one

It depends on profit level, liability exposure, and growth plans. Below around £30,000 net profit the tax advantage of a Limited Company is marginal, and sole trader simplicity often wins. Above that threshold, and any time you take on staff, premises, or external investment, Limited becomes the right answer. LLPs suit professional partnerships (legal, design, consulting) where partners want flow-through tax treatment with limited liability.

Standard same-day incorporation with Companies House if the application is filed before 3pm on a working day - the certificate of incorporation usually comes back within hours, and a digital application is normally approved within 24 hours. HMRC registrations for Corporation Tax follow automatically; PAYE and VAT registration take 5-15 working days depending on HMRC backlog. Most clients are trading from a UK company within 24-48 hours of engagement.

There are two costs. Companies House charges £100 to register a company digitally (or £124 by post, which is slower), and this changed from 1 February 2026. On top of that is your accountant's fee. Our formation packages are a fixed £129, £250 or £499 depending on the setup you need, on a rolling monthly basis you can cancel anytime, backed by a 30-day money-back guarantee. That covers the incorporation, identity verification, SIC codes and HMRC registration, not just filing the form.

Yes. You can register directly with Companies House for £100, and the form itself is not hard to complete. What the form does not do is set the company up to save you tax. The parts that cost the most to unpick later, your share structure, your salary and dividend mix, and the Corporation Tax, PAYE and VAT registrations, are the parts a cheap filing skips. Since 18 November 2025 you must also verify your identity to incorporate. We handle all of it and structure the company properly from day one.

Yes - there is no residency requirement for UK directors or shareholders. You will need a UK registered office (we provide one), and most UK banks require at least one director to visit in person, though digital alternatives like Wise, Tide, and Revolut Business open accounts remotely. EORI registration for import/export is also handled in the same setup.

Restructuring share classes later triggers legal fees, stamp duty, and sometimes income tax charges on founders. If you might raise SEIS or EIS, take on investors, or grant employee options through an EMI scheme, we structure the share classes (ordinary, growth shares, option pool) at formation so you do not pay to unpick a single share class six months in.

Companies House incorporation, certificate of incorporation, memorandum and articles of association, share certificates, statutory registers, HMRC Corporation Tax registration, optional PAYE and VAT registration, a registered office address for the first year, and bank account introductions. PAYE setup, first-year accounting, and ongoing compliance work are quoted separately.

Less than you might expect. We need your proposed company name, a registered office address (or you can use ours to keep your home address off the public register), the names, dates of birth and addresses of your directors and shareholders, how you want to split the shares, and a SIC code describing your trade, which we help you choose. Since 18 November 2025, every director and person with significant control must also verify their identity, and we guide you through that as your Authorised Corporate Service Provider.

Once Companies House approves your application, usually within 24 hours, you receive your certificate of incorporation showing your company number and incorporation date, your memorandum and articles of association, your share certificates and your statutory registers. We also confirm your Corporation Tax registration and pass on your Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR) as soon as HMRC issues it.

As soon as your certificate of incorporation comes through, usually within 24 hours of us filing. You can open a business bank account, sign contracts and invoice straight away. We recommend setting up your bookkeeping first so your figures are right from the very first transaction, and remember you must tell HMRC within 3 months of starting to trade.

Yes. Our office is in West London, and we work with founders across the UK. Incorporation is done online, so wherever you are, your named accountant handles Companies House and HMRC for you remotely. You get the same service and the same person, in London or anywhere else in the country.

Yes. Many new companies register for VAT at the same time as incorporation, either because they expect to pass the £90,000 threshold or because voluntary registration lets them reclaim VAT. We handle both in one go, along with Corporation Tax and PAYE if you need it, so every registration is done before you start trading.