Last updated Aug 20, 2024 and written by Tom Richardson

Updates to the company formation process: PSC and SIC

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This month sees two important updates to the UK limited company formation process; the addition of a ‘People with Significant Control’ (PSC) section and the addition of a ‘Standard Industrial Classification’ (SIC) section. Let’s take a look at what this means for you when forming a company.

‘People with Significant Control’ (PSC)

When you form a private company limited by shares, as well as the normal company information that you need to provide (unique company name, registered office, director information and shareholder information), you also need to enter information about your company’s ‘People with Significant Control’. This update appears between the ‘Shareholders’ and ‘Secretaries’ sections of the company formation process:

PSC

If you have appointed the same person as a director and a shareholder, we will automatically enter the PSC information for you. If you have different people acting as directors and shareholders, you will need to enter the following information for each PSC:

  • Name
  • Date of birth
  • Nationality
  • Country of residence
  • Service address
  • Residential address
  • Nature of control

All of this begs the question, who is someone with ‘Significant Control’? As outlined by GOV.UK, this is anyone who:

  • owns more than 25% of the company’s shares
  • holds more than 25% of the company’s voting rights
  • holds the right to appoint or remove the majority of directors
  • has the right to, or actually exercises significant influence or control
  • holds the right to exercise or actually exercises significant control over a trust or company that meets one of the first 4 conditions.

Standard Industrial Classification (SIC)

The SIC code is a 5 digit code that outlines the industry or industries  that the company will be operating in. It used to be that company’s only had to provide an SIC code when filing an annual return (now known as the confirmation statement), but now it’s required as part of the company formation process.

The SIC section appears in your company’s ‘Final Summary’ page:

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As you can see, we have preselected the code 82990. This is a generic code that means ’Other business support service activities’. If you wish to change the code, simply select ‘change’ and enter the new code/s (you can select up to four). Don’t worry if you don’t know what industry your company will be operating in, use 82990 – you can always update the code/s in the confirmation statement. You can view a full list of the SIC codes here.

There you have it, the two updates to the company formation process. These are by no means drastic changes and certainly nothing to worry about. Company formations with us will remain as simple as ever!

Are you ready to start your business adventure by forming a limited company? See here for more information.