Certificate Of Good Standing In The UK: What Is It And Do You Need One? 

What is a Certificate of Good Standing in the UK? Is it maybe something your business needs?

In short, this certificate confirms that you are in “good standing” with Companies House. It proves that your company: 

1. Has been in continuous, uninterrupted existence since its incorporation
2. Has no action currently being taken against it to strike it off the register

In simple terms, this means that your business has been running smoothly since it was registered as a limited company. Good for you! Sometimes, this certificate might be referred to as a ‘Certificate of Authorisation’ or ‘Certificate of Existence’ instead. 

Most of the time, these certificates aren’t needed, but there are a few occasions where they might be required – which we’ll cover below in our comprehensive guide.

A Certificate of Good Standing in more detail

A Certificate of Good Standing will look very similar to a Certificate of Incorporation that you will have received when forming your limited company. However, there are a few bits of extra information on a Certificate of Good Standing. 

So, your Certificate of Good Standing will include:

• Your company name and number
• The date the company was incorporated (aka your formation data)
• The names of all company directors
• The name of the company secretary (if applicable)
• The registered office address
• Details of any company name changes, if required
• Verification that your company is up-to-date with any filing requirements
• A statement from the Companies House that your company has been in continuous and unbroken existence since being incorporated
• A statement from the Companies House saying that no action is being taken to strike off the company or dissolve it
• A statement that, as far as the Registrar is aware, the company is not in liquidation or subject to an administration order, and no receiver or manager of the company’s property has been appointed

That may look like a lot, but in reality, it’s just a few short details with an accompanying statement from the Companies House. It’s just a single A4 certificate, after all. 

You can view an example of what a Certificate of Good Standing looks like here.

Recommended Service For Certificates Of Good Standing:

If you’re looking for complete ‘done for you’ service that gives you a trusted Certificate Of Good Standing, we recommend 1st Formations.

You can get your certificate in as little as 24 hours, effectively demonstrating your company is compliant with all statutory requirements.

Click here to visit their site

Now that we answered the question: what is a Certificate of Good Standing in the UK, let’s look at when you might need one.

Certificates of good standing might be required for opening bank accounts

A Certificate of Good Standing might be needed alongside further documentation when opening a business bank account.

This certificate helps them assess the risk associated with opening an account for your business. By providing a Certificate of Good Standing, you’re showing the bank that your business is:  

• Legally registered: This confirms that your business exists and is recognized by the relevant authorities.  
• Compliant with regulations: It assures the bank that your business adheres to all the necessary laws and rules, reducing the risk of legal issues.
• Financially sound: While not guaranteed, your business will likely be in good financial standing as you’ve met its filing obligations. 

Not every bank account will require a certificate of good standing to open, but they might be requested as a way to verify your legitimacy.

If you’re planning to open a bank account overseas or if you’re opening a UK bank account as a non-resident director, it’s more likely that you will be asked to produce a certificate of good standing. 

Just bear in mind that there’s no penalty for requesting a Certificate of Good Standing (apart from the fees to produce it, of course!).

So, technically, nothing is stopping you from obtaining one on the off chance that you might need it if you’re considering opening up a new business bank account within the next three months.

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Certificates of good standing are required if you’re trading overseas 

If you plan to trade in another country or set up an office there, a Certificate of Good Standing is often asked for by the country’s own company authorities. 

However, several 3rd parties may also request this document. For example, you may be asked for a Certificate of Good Standing if you were to: 

• Apply for a business loan
• Lease commercial premises
• Work with new suppliers or bid on high-value contracts
• Apply for trade credit
• Seek new business partners or investors

In these cases, a Certificate of Good Standing is proof that your company meets all its legal obligations and is credible and professional. 

Although certificates of good standing are used for overseas trading, you can’t actually use them in a foreign jurisdiction unless they have been legalised. 

Legalising Certificates of Good Standing is done by using an apostille. This is basically a stamped official certificate issued by the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office, which makes the document legally valid in any contracting states of the Apostille Convention.

Luckily, most companies that will acquire this document for you will also offer apostille services at the same time, meaning you can get your legally valid certificate back and ready to use without delay or hassle.

How to apply for your Certificate of Good Standing

A Certificate of Good Standing is issued by the Companies House and sent, via post, to your registered office address. You can ask for an electronic version instead, but this will be lacking a signature, so it might not suit the purpose you need it for. 

If you were to request this document manually, you would need to go onto the HMRC website using the find and update company information service. Then, you need to search for your company and order the document from the ‘More’ tab, paying the applicable fees. Or, you could try calling them directly to arrange it.

The standard service costs £15 and will be sent via Royal Mail Second Class post within 10 working days. If you need it quicker, the same-day service costs £50 and will be sent the same day (if ordered before 11 AM!) using Royal Mail first class service. 

Certificates of good standing last 3 months from the date of issue. So, we’d recommend saving your money and hassle until the certificate is something that is definitely needed by your business. 

Alternatively, if you don’t want the hassle of contacting and requesting a certificate from Companies House, you can also use a company formation agency to do this step for you, completely stress-free.

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What are the requirements for a Certificate of Good Standing? 

There are not a lot of requirements stopping you from getting a Certificate of Good Standing, bar the obvious: you must have good standing. 

This means that you need to: 

• Be fully up-to-date with your annual accounts and confirmation statement findings
• Have been in continuous, uninterrupted existence since you incorporated the company
• Have no action being taken against your company to remove it from the register

In addition, you need to be a limited company, with at least one director who is a ‘natural person’. This doesn’t mean they’ve avoided plastic surgery – it just means that they are human rather than having a company that’s owned by another company.

If you have a public company, you will need to have at least two directors (one being natural!) and a company secretary. 

Recommended Service – 1st Formations:

If you’re looking for a complete ‘done for you’ service that gives you a trusted Certificate Of Good Standing, we recommend 1st Formations.

You can get your certificate in as little as 24 hours, effectively demonstrating your company is compliant with all statutory requirements.

Need more business advice and tips? 

Now that you know what a Certificate of Good Standing in the UK is and whether you need one or not, you might need some more advice.

You’ve come to the right place. Find all the news, tips, advice, and ideas that you could need to start and grow your company here at Business4Beginners.