Form EH06: Updating Members' Info on the Central Register

At a glance

• What EH06 does: notifies Companies House of updates to member information held on the central public register, under the ongoing duty in section 128E of the Companies Act 2006.
• Who uses it: private companies that made an election under section 128B of the Companies Act 2006 to hold their register of members on the central register rather than internally.
• Statutory basis: section 128E of the Companies Act 2006, as inserted by the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Act 2015 and operative from 30 June 2016.
• Critical change — ECCTA 2023: the option to keep members' information on the central register was abolished on 26 January 2026 by the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 (Commencement No. 7) Regulations 2026. No new elections can now be made.
• Companies already on the central register must now create and maintain a full local register of members at their registered office or SAIL address. The historical EH06 filings remain on the public record and can be used to reconstruct the information.
• Filing fee: no fee is charged for filing EH06 (always verify the current position at GOV.UK before filing, as fees are subject to change).
• Not legal advice. This guide is for information only. It is not a substitute for legal advice tailored to your company's circumstances.

What form EH06 is and what it does

Form EH06 is a Companies House notification used when a private company has made a central register election under section 128B of the Companies Act 2006 and a change to its member information needs to be reported to the registrar. The form is titled "Give notice of an update to members' information held on the central register."

The underlying obligation is set out in section 128E of the Companies Act 2006. That section requires a company whose section 128B election is in force to deliver to the registrar any information it would otherwise have been required to enter in its own internal register of members. EH06 is the paper form through which that delivery is made. The form can also be filed electronically through Companies House WebFiling.

EH06 is not used for unrelated company changes. It has a specific and narrow function: updating member details while the central register election applies. Director appointments, registered office changes, and PSC changes each have their own dedicated forms.

The statutory framework: Chapter 2A of the Companies Act 2006

Chapter 2A of Part 8 of the Companies Act 2006 (sections 128A to 128K) was inserted by the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Act 2015 and came into force on 30 June 2016. It created the central register option for the register of members of private companies.

The key provisions relevant to EH06 are:

• Section 128A — limits the central register option to private companies; public companies cannot use it.
• Section 128B — allows a private company to elect to keep its register of members on the central register; the election is made by giving notice to the registrar, and all members must assent.
• Section 128D — sets out the effect of the election: the company's obligation under Chapter 2 to maintain its own register of members does not apply during the period the election is in force, but the company must keep a "historic" register containing all information required immediately before the election took effect (it does not need to update that historic register for changes occurring after the election).
• Section 128E — the duty to deliver information to the registrar during the election period: any relevant information the company would have been required to enter in its own register must be delivered to Companies House. EH06 is the paper vehicle for that delivery.
• Section 128J — a company may withdraw the election at any time by giving notice of withdrawal to the registrar; on withdrawal, the company must enter in its register of members all information required in respect of matters current at that time.

The term "relevant information" in section 128E is defined to exclude certain dates — specifically the date when a person is registered as a member, and the date when membership of a limited company increases from one to two or more members — because those dates would be derived from when the document containing the information is registered by the registrar rather than from the underlying event.

What information EH06 covers

EH06 captures whatever change would otherwise have been made to the internal register of members. The information required in a register of members is set out in section 113 of the Companies Act 2006.

For companies with a share capital, the register (and therefore EH06) must include:

• The name and address of each member.
• A statement of the shares held by each member, distinguishing each share by its number while shares carry numbers.
• Where the company has more than one class of issued shares, the class to which each share belongs.
• The amount paid or agreed to be considered paid on each member's shares.

For companies without a share capital, EH06 covers:

• The name and address of each member.
• Where there is more than one class of membership, the class to which each member belongs.

Typical events that trigger an EH06 filing include the admission of a new shareholder, a transfer of shares between existing members, a member leaving the company entirely, a change to a member's name or address, and corrections to particulars previously filed in error.

When and how to file EH06

Timing

Section 128E requires relevant information to be delivered to the registrar "as soon as reasonably practicable" after the company becomes aware of it, and "in any event, no later than the time by which the company would have been required to enter the information in its register of members" had the election not been in force. There is no single fixed calendar deadline — the backstop follows the same obligation that would have applied to the internal register. Prompt filing matters because delays create discrepancies between the company's actual position and what the public register shows.

How to file

EH06 can be filed:

• Online through the Companies House WebFiling service (note that from 13 October 2025 a GOV.UK One Login is required to access WebFiling).
• By post to the relevant Companies House office, using the paper form available from the GOV.UK EH06 publication page.

Forms must be printed at full size on white A4 paper if submitted in paper form. Keep a dated copy of every EH06 filed, together with any supporting documents — stock transfer forms, board minutes approving a share transfer, or similar — as part of the company's own records.

Information the form asks for

EH06 requires the company name, company registration number, and details of the member or members affected by the change. Where shares are involved, the form asks for the class of shares, the number held before and after the change, and the effective date of the change. The completed form goes directly onto the public register, so accuracy is important.

The ECCTA 2023 changes: what companies need to know now

The most significant development affecting EH06 is the abolition of the central register option for members.

The Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 (ECCTA) made sweeping changes to Companies House powers and company register obligations. Section 49 and Schedule 1 of the ECCTA removed the option to keep members' information on the central register. That change was brought into force on 26 January 2026 by the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 (Commencement No. 7) Regulations 2026.

The equivalent change for directors, secretaries, and PSC registers took effect earlier, on 18 November 2025 — but the members' register change had a later commencement date.

What companies that made a section 128B election must now do

If your company made an election under section 128B and was filing EH06 updates, you must now:

1. Create a local register of members. This must be maintained at the company's registered office address or at a single alternative inspection location (SAIL address) registered under section 1136 of the Companies Act 2006.
2. Enter all relevant historical information. The register must contain all the information that would have appeared in it had the election never been made. Companies House confirms that the historical central register records — including EH06 filings — remain publicly available and can be used to reconstruct this information.
3. Include a transition statement in the register. The register should include a statement that before the change, the company's member information was held on the central register at Companies House.
4. Make the register available for inspection. The statutory inspection rights under the Companies Act 2006 apply to the local register in the usual way.

Companies should not assume that doing nothing is an acceptable response. Failing to maintain a proper register of members is a breach of statutory obligations under the Companies Act 2006 and can expose the company and its officers to enforcement action.

Directors' and PSC registers: a different position

It is important to distinguish the members' register position from the changes to directors, secretaries, and PSC registers under ECCTA 2023. For those registers, the 18 November 2025 changes abolished the local registers entirely — companies are no longer required to maintain local registers of directors, secretaries, or PSCs. Instead, all relevant information must be filed directly with Companies House within 14 days of an appointment, resignation, or change in particulars.

The members' register works differently: the central register option for members has been abolished, but the local register of members remains a legal requirement. Companies must hold it themselves. This is the reverse of the position for directors and PSCs.

How EH06 fits with the rest of the EH form family

The EH series of Companies House forms covers the various elections to hold statutory register information on the central register. The forms relevant to members are:

• EH05 — the election form used to opt in to the central register regime for members: "Elect to keep register of members information on the central register." This was the starting point; EH06 was the ongoing maintenance form used once the election was in force.
• EH06 — the update form covered by this guide.

Other EH forms covered elections for directors (EH01), directors' residential addresses (EH02), secretaries (EH03), and persons with significant control (EH04). The election regime for all of these has now been superseded by the ECCTA 2023 changes, though the timetables differ.

What happens if EH06 updates are not filed promptly

While the section 128B election was in force, the duty under section 128E to deliver relevant information to the registrar was a statutory obligation. Failure to comply was a breach of the Companies Act 2006 and could expose the company and its officers to enforcement action. Under Chapter 2A, persons guilty of a relevant offence are liable on summary conviction to a fine not exceeding level 3 on the standard scale and, for a continued contravention, a daily default fine not exceeding one-tenth of level 3 on the standard scale (check GOV.UK and the current legislation for the up-to-date penalty levels, as these are subject to change).

Beyond formal penalties, late or missing EH06 filings create inconsistencies on the public register that can cause difficulties at the next confirmation statement, on a share transfer, or in due diligence for a sale or investment.

EH06 and the confirmation statement

Filing EH06 during the year did not exempt a company from also filing an annual confirmation statement (form CS01). The two obligations run in parallel: EH06 provides real-time updates as changes occur; the CS01 confirms the company's overall position at the end of each confirmation period. A company that was filing EH06 updates throughout the year would still need to file a CS01 confirming that the information on the central register was accurate as at the confirmation date.

Frequently asked questions

See the FAQ section above for answers to the most common questions about form EH06.

This guide is for general information about form EH06 and the central register election regime as it applied in England and Wales. It is not legal advice and is not a substitute for advice tailored to your company's specific circumstances. The law described reflects the position as at June 2026, including the abolition of the central register option for members on 26 January 2026. Always check GOV.UK and legislation.gov.uk for the most current position.

Last reviewed: June 2026 by a non-practising solicitor · Next review due: June 2027 or on legislative change.