Registered Office vs Service Address: UK Guide (2026)

The difference between a registered office and a service address is who the address belongs to: the registered office is the company’s legal address, and a service address is a person’s address for their role as a director, secretary or PSC. Both are public on the Companies House register. To keep your home off it, neither address can be your home, which is why most small companies pair a registered office with a director service address. This guide shows what each address does, where it appears and the cheapest way to cover both.

Registered Office vs Service Address at a Glance

A trading address is often confused with both, so it is in the table too. It is the address you show customers; it is not filed with Companies House at all.

	Registered office	Service address	Business (trading) address
Belongs to	The company	Each director, secretary and PSC	The business
Required?	Yes, from the day the company is formed	Yes, one for every officer and PSC	No
Where it can be	In the part of the UK where the company is registered	Anywhere in the world	Anywhere
PO Box allowed?	No	No, post must be deliverable and acknowledged	Your choice
On the public register?	Yes	Yes	No
Who writes to it	Companies House, HMRC, courts	Companies House and anyone serving documents on the officer	Customers and suppliers
CorpAssist price	£39.99 a year	£59.99 a year with the registered office	£99.99 a year for all three

What a Registered Office Is For

The registered office is where the company receives official post and where legal documents can be served on it. It must pass the registered office address rules: a physical address in the right part of the UK, where post reaches someone acting for the company, which you are entitled to use. A company registered in England and Wales cannot use an address in Scotland, and the other way round.

It is shown on the register, on the company’s filings and, by law, on its website, letters and order forms. If it is your home, your home is public for as long as the company uses it. Our registered office address service replaces it with a London address for £39.99 a year.

What a Service Address Is For

Every director, company secretary and PSC gives a service address. It is the address shown next to their name on the register and on the company’s filings, and where official post for that person, in their role, can be sent. It can be in any country, but post must be deliverable and acknowledged.

Separately, each person gives Companies House their usual residential address. That one is protected: it is not shown on the public register. The problem is that many directors give their home as the service address too, without realising the service address is public. A director service address fixes that.

The Cheapest Way to Keep Your Home Off the Register

Your home stays off the public register only if it is neither the registered office nor any officer’s service address.

Registered office only (£39.99 a year): the company’s address is private, but if you give your home as your service address, it is still public next to your name.
Registered office and director service address (£59.99 a year): neither the company nor the director shows a home address. Each extra director or PSC service address is £24.99 a year.
All three addresses (£99.99 a year): adds a London business address you can put on your website, invoices and letterheads instead of your home.

Already filed with your home address? Changing the address stops it appearing on new filings. To remove it from older documents, see how to remove your home address from Companies House.

Common Mistakes

Buying a registered office but leaving your home as your service address.
Forgetting PSCs: a shareholder with more than 25% also has a public service address.
Using a PO Box as either address.
Putting your home on your website because you have no trading address.
Moving the registered office without updating each officer’s service address (Companies House treats them as separate filings). See changing your registered office address.

Thinking about a monthly virtual office instead? Compare virtual office vs registered office, or see registered office prices compared.

Both Addresses, One Yearly Price

CorpAssist provides registered office and service addresses for companies registered in England and Wales:

Registered office plus director service address for £59.99 a year, so neither the company nor the director shows a home address
Extra service addresses for other directors or PSCs at £24.99 a year each
Official letters from Companies House and HMRC scanned and emailed to you
For existing companies, the change of address is filed at Companies House for you
Identity check online with your passport or ID card and a proof of address, including documents from outside the UK

Office + service address — £59.99 Compare address options

Frequently Asked Questions

What does "service address" mean?

A service address is the address shown on the public Companies House register for a director, company secretary or person with significant control (PSC). Official letters and legal documents for that person, in their role with the company, can be sent there. It can be anywhere in the world, as long as post can be delivered and acknowledged.

What is a registered office in the UK?

It is the company’s official address on the Companies House register. Companies House, HMRC and the courts send official post there, and legal documents can be served on the company at that address. It must be a physical address in the part of the UK where the company is registered, and it is public.

What is the UK registered office address service?

A paid service that lets your company use a provider’s address as its registered office, with official post handled for you. CorpAssist provides a London registered office for companies registered in England and Wales for £39.99 a year, with letters from Companies House and HMRC scanned and emailed to you.

Can my service address be the same as the registered office?

Yes. Directors and PSCs can give the company’s registered office as their service address. This is the most common way to keep a home address off the register, as long as the registered office itself is not your home.

Does a service address hide my home address completely?

It keeps your home off the public register for new filings. You still give Companies House your usual residential address, which is kept off the public record. Older filings that already show your home address stay public until you apply to remove them with form SR01.

Do I need both a registered office and a service address?

Every company needs a registered office, and every director and PSC needs a service address. They can be the same address. If you use a registered office service but give your home as your service address, your home is still on the register.

See all CorpAssist address services.

Rules checked against GOV.UK on 28 October 2026. CorpAssist is an independent commercial service and is not Companies House or GOV.UK.