UTR Number: Company vs Personal UTR Explained

A UTR number (Unique Taxpayer Reference) is a 10-digit reference HMRC gives to every limited company and to every person who registers for Self Assessment. A company gets its UTR automatically after it is registered at Companies House: HMRC posts it to the registered office address, usually around 15 days later. You need it to register for Corporation Tax, file the Company Tax Return and register for VAT. A company UTR and a personal UTR are different numbers.

Company UTR vs Personal UTR

Do not mix them up on forms. A director who also files Self Assessment ends up with two UTRs: one for the company and one personal. Neither is the same as the company registration number; see what a company registration number is.

When Does a New Company Get Its UTR?

1. Companies House registers the company and tells HMRC.
2. HMRC posts a letter with the company’s UTR to the registered office address, usually around 15 days after incorporation. It takes longer if the address is outside the UK.
3. You use the UTR to register the company for Corporation Tax, which must be done within 3 months of starting to do business.

Because the letter goes to the registered office, make sure someone will open post there. With a CorpAssist registered office address (£39.99 a year), official letters from HMRC and Companies House are scanned and emailed to you, so the UTR reaches you even if you live abroad.

Where to Find Your UTR

Company UTR

• The HMRC letter sent after incorporation.
• The notice to deliver a Company Tax Return, and HMRC payment reminders.
• Previous Company Tax Returns.
• The company’s HMRC online account, once set up.

Personal UTR

• Your Personal Tax Account or the HMRC app.
• Past Self Assessment returns and HMRC letters, such as notices to file or statements.

A UTR is 10 digits, sometimes written with a space after the fifth digit. Some letters show it followed by a “K”; that is part of a payment reference, not the UTR itself.

What to Do if You Have Lost Your Company UTR

1. Check every HMRC letter and email the company has received, including scanned post from your address provider.
2. Ask your accountant: they will have it if they have filed for the company.
3. Request it online from HMRC using the company registration number. HMRC posts it to the registered office address on the register, so check that address is current first.
4. If none of that works, contact HMRC’s Corporation Tax helpline.

If your registered office is out of date, the letter will go to the old address. Change it first; see how to change your registered office address.

UTR Numbers for Directors Living Abroad

A company formed by a non-UK resident gets its UTR in exactly the same way: HMRC posts it to the registered office in the UK, not to the director’s home abroad. If nobody collects post at that address, the letter can sit unopened for months and the Corporation Tax registration slips. That is the most common reason overseas founders contact HMRC for a replacement.

A director living abroad usually only needs a personal UTR if they have UK income to report through Self Assessment, for example dividends from the UK company above the allowances. Whether you must file depends on your circumstances and any tax treaty with your country, so take advice from an accountant who deals with non-residents. See UK company formation for non-residents.

Is a UTR Confidential?

Treat it as private information. It is not secret in the way a bank PIN is, and you will give it to your accountant, your bank and HMRC, but it is not published on the Companies House register and should not appear on invoices or your website. Fraudsters use real UTRs in fake HMRC emails to look convincing, and HMRC never asks you to confirm bank details by email or text.

What You Need a UTR For

• Registering the company for Corporation Tax and filing the Company Tax Return.
• Registering for VAT: the questionnaire asks for the company UTR. See the VAT registration guide.
• Opening some business bank accounts and dealing with HMRC by phone.
• Your accountant’s agent authorisation with HMRC.

For the full list of yearly deadlines that use your UTR, see annual filing requirements. And for everything else to set up once the company exists, see what to do after registering a company.

Frequently Asked Questions

Official guidance: find your UTR number on GOV.UK.