CH04 Form UK: Change Corporate Secretary Details

What this document is

CH04 is the Companies House paper form used to notify a change in the particulars of a corporate secretary. A corporate secretary is where the company secretary role is held by another company or firm, rather than by a named individual.

If you need to change details for an individual secretary, a different form applies (CH03), so it is worth double checking which one your situation calls for before you start filling anything in. The form is used to update items such as the corporate secretary's name, its registered or principal office, the country or state of incorporation, the legal form of the body, the governing law it operates under, and any register of companies it is recorded on along with its registration number.

You cannot use CH04 to appoint a new secretary or to remove one, those are separate filings. It is purely for keeping the existing record accurate. Most companies can file the equivalent changes online through the Companies House WebFiling service, which is usually faster and gives instant confirmation, but the paper CH04 remains available where online filing is not practical.

How to use this document

1. Confirm you need CH04 rather than another form. CH04 is specifically for changing the details of an existing corporate secretary. If you are appointing a new corporate secretary, terminating one, or changing details for an individual secretary, you need a different form. Check the Companies House guidance so you pick the right one from the outset. 2. Gather the current and updated information. Have the company name and number to hand, along with the corporate secretary's existing registered details as they currently appear on the public register. Then prepare the new details you want to record, including any supporting context such as the date the change took effect. Accuracy here avoids the form being rejected and sent back. 3. Complete the CH04 form. Download the current version of CH04 from gov.uk and complete it in black ink or type the entries if filling electronically before printing. Every mandatory field must be filled in, and the date of change needs to reflect when the update actually took effect, not the date you are filing. An authorised person, typically a director, must sign the form. 4. Send the form to Companies House. Post the signed form to the Companies House office for the jurisdiction where your company is registered (Cardiff for England and Wales, Edinburgh for Scotland, Belfast for Northern Ireland). There is no filing fee for notifying a change of secretary's details, but always check gov.uk for the current position before posting. Keep a copy for your own records. 5. Check the public register once processed. Companies House usually takes several working days to process paper filings. Once done, look up your company on the Companies House public register to confirm the updated details appear correctly. If anything is wrong, you will need to file a further correction, so a quick check at this stage saves time later.

Common questions