A registered email address for your company

A company must provide an appropriate registered email address to Companies House. This is an official contact channel, not necessarily the email shown to customers on the website. The address is not published on the public register, but it needs to be monitored reliably. ^[1][2]

Choose an address the company can maintain

Use an arrangement that allows official messages to come to the attention of someone acting for the company. Consider what happens during absence, staff turnover or a change of adviser. An address controlled only by a departing employee can become a serious gap even while the mailbox technically continues to exist.

A shared role mailbox can be practical where access is controlled and responsibilities are clear. The important point is who reads and acts on messages, not whether the address contains a particular job title.

Separate registration from day-to-day contacts

The registered email does not automatically replace the customer service address, an accountant's communication address or every email held by HMRC. Keep a short inventory showing which organisation uses which contact and how each is updated.

Changing the website footer alone will not amend the Companies House record. Likewise, changing the registered email will not automatically redirect messages sent to an older address by banks or suppliers.

Check the current filing requirements

Companies House guidance explains when the email must be supplied and that an existing registered email should be updated through the relevant process before confirming the company's details. Verify the current entry and submission route rather than assuming last year's filer used the address you intended. ^[1]

Record approval of the chosen address and retain the update acknowledgement. Test that authorised staff can access the mailbox and that official correspondence is not routinely filtered into an unattended folder.

Set a monitoring routine

• Assign a primary reader and a backup.
• Review official messages promptly and record deadlines.
• Route queries to the responsible director or adviser.
• Use appropriate account security and recovery arrangements.
• Review access when staff or advisers leave.
• Keep important messages in the company's records.

Plan the handover before an engagement ends

If an accountant has provided the address, agree whether it will remain available and for how long. Update the registered email before the old arrangement becomes inaccessible, and preserve relevant correspondence already received.

Treat the mailbox as a company responsibility

Choose an arrangement that survives a staff change. A role mailbox can be practical where the company controls the account, recovery methods and access permissions. If an individual address is used, record how the company will maintain reliable monitoring during absence and after departure. The key question is whether official messages will actually reach someone able to act.

Appoint a primary reader and a backup. Explain which messages need immediate escalation and where the correspondence is retained. An inbox with hundreds of unread supplier messages may technically receive official email but still fail as a working compliance channel. Consider separating the registered address from high-volume customer enquiries so important notices are easier to identify.

Keep registration and reminder settings distinct

An address supplied for a particular filing account or reminder subscription may not be the company's registered email. Record which address serves each purpose and use the relevant official change process. Changing the contact page on the website or adding a new accountant to reminders does not establish that the registered email has been updated.

For example, a founder sets up the company using a personal address, while the finance manager later receives accounts reminders. The founder stops checking the original inbox and assumes finance receives everything. A clear register of communication channels would show that official company contact and reminder subscriptions still depend on different accounts.

Plan an adviser handover before access ends

If an accountant supplies or monitors the registered email, agree who owns the address, who can retrieve correspondence and how a change will be handled. Include a cut-off date, forwarding arrangements and a list of unresolved messages. The incoming adviser needs the substance of pending queries, not just confirmation that a new mailbox now exists.

Check that the company retains evidence of official correspondence relevant to filings and decisions. Export necessary messages in a usable format before an account is closed, subject to appropriate data handling. Avoid forwarding entire unrelated mailboxes when a focused correspondence pack would provide the information needed for the handover.

Verify unusual requests independently

A message arriving at the registered address should still be assessed for authenticity. Use known official routes to verify unexpected payment or identity-document requests. Keep personal codes out of broad email threads and avoid changing bank or access details solely on an unverified instruction. The monitoring procedure should make it easy for staff to escalate uncertainty promptly.

For the wider handover process, read Company records when changing accountants. Companies House filing review can help organise the company administration and clarify who monitors the registered address under the agreed arrangement.

For example, a small company changing accountants may transfer bookkeeping files correctly but overlook the official mailbox. Including the registered email in the handover checklist helps ensure that a Companies House query does not sit with an adviser who no longer has responsibility for responding.