Company Formation

Register and incorporate your UK or US company easily.

Register your Company

Ready to take your business or startup to the next level and set up a separate legal entity? Formulate your company with easily through our partnership with CFS international formations.

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Fast Service

Great Value

Safe

Fast Service

Great Value

Safe

Why Register

Fast Service

The majority of companies we form are registered within 3 working hours. That’s quick.

Great Value

All packages include the Companies House filing fee, plus our free company admin portal so you can keep your company details up to date.

You’re in safe hands

CFS Formations are one of the UK’s leading formation companies. CFS is a team of company formation agents, specialising in all aspects of company start ups both in the UK and overseas.

UK Start now US Start now ​

Why register a Limited Company?

A Limited Company is the most popular type of company formation in the UK. It is a business structure where the Directors or Shareholders have their liability limited to the contributions which they have made or invested in the company. A Limited Company can be formed by anyone going into business to make a profit. All details are entered easily online and there is no requirement for original signatures.

 

Limited Company explained

  • A Limited Company is the most popular incorporation in the UK because of its simple and flexible business structure.
  • This type of company is required to have a Shareholder and Director, the Shareholders can also be known as the owners of the company.
  • A Limited Company has shareholders who are allocated shares.
  • A confirmation statement and accounts must be filed each year.
  • All shares within a Limited Company must be allocated to the Shareholders.
  • If one member of the company should pull out of the company, the company can still function unlike other types of companies.
  • The company name is protected after registration. No other company is legally permitted to trade under the same company name in the UK.

Officers in the Company

You can register a Limited Company with just one person acting as the director and shareholder of the company. The directors are responsible for the day to day running of the company. The extent of their responsibilities are outlined in the Articles of Association.

You are able to appoint corporate officers to a Limited Company, however; you cannot just have corporate officers, an individual director must also be appointed.

You are able to appoint a secretary to a Limited Company, although a secretary is no longer a requirement.

Timescale

Once all company information has been submitted to the company registrar, a Limited Company formation usually takes within 3 to 24 hours (dependent on the company registrar) and is then ready to trade. However; CFS have previously incorporated a company in 6 minutes.

Requirements for a Limited Company formation

  • The company name must end with either ‘Limited’ or ‘LTD’.
  • The Registered Office Address must be located in the UK. We can supply an address if required.
  • A Minimum of 1 Individual Director and 1 Shareholder must be appointed (they can be the same person.)
  • The Officers can be of any nationality and reside anywhere in the world.
  • Name and Address of the Director and Subscriber/Member. The directors’ and subscribers’ personal address is hidden from public record.
  • The minimum Share Capital is £0.01
  • There is no maximum Share Capital.
  • Minimum number of shares which must be issued is 1.
  • All company shares must be issued to a Shareholder

Why use CFS International for your Limited Company?

CFS International are highly experienced in setting up Limited Companies and their UK business start-up team are there to help you with your formation, from start to finish.

They have the ability to form your Limited Company electronically, eliminating the need to sign and complete any paperwork.

All details are entered online, before placing your order. Before you submit and pay for your company, you are able to review all company details you have provided. From here you can also amend anything, if necessary. Once your company has been incorporated you will receive your Certificate of Incorporation and Share Certificate(s) confirming the existence of your company plus many other fully completed documents in your Company Register.

The CFS standard package includes all the documents you need legally to start trading with your company. This is quite unique as most companies charge extra for providing a company register, share certificates, minutes of the first meeting etc.

CFS have the software which allows you to adopt/upload your own specific Articles of Association to your company, free of charge or alternatively you can use the model articles they provide.

Before doing anything, it is wise to consult with a lawyer and an accountant to have your options clarified and questions answered.

 

Why Register

Fast Service

The majority of companies we form are registered within 3 working hours. That’s quick.

Great Value

All packages include the Companies House filing fee, plus our free company admin portal so you can keep your company details up to date.

You’re in safe hands

CFS Formations are one of the UK’s leading formation companies. CFS is a team of company formation agents, specialising in all aspects of company start ups both in the UK and overseas.

UK Start now US Start now ​

Why register a Limited Company?

A Limited Company is the most popular type of company formation in the UK. It is a business structure where the Directors or Shareholders have their liability limited to the contributions which they have made or invested in the company. A Limited Company can be formed by anyone going into business to make a profit. All details are entered easily online and there is no requirement for original signatures.

 

Limited Company explained

  • A Limited Company is the most popular incorporation in the UK because of its simple and flexible business structure.
  • This type of company is required to have a Shareholder and Director, the Shareholders can also be known as the owners of the company.
  • A Limited Company has shareholders who are allocated shares.
  • A confirmation statement and accounts must be filed each year.
  • All shares within a Limited Company must be allocated to the Shareholders.
  • If one member of the company should pull out of the company, the company can still function unlike other types of companies.
  • The company name is protected after registration. No other company is legally permitted to trade under the same company name in the UK.

Officers in the Company

You can register a Limited Company with just one person acting as the director and shareholder of the company. The directors are responsible for the day to day running of the company. The extent of their responsibilities are outlined in the Articles of Association.

You are able to appoint corporate officers to a Limited Company, however; you cannot just have corporate officers, an individual director must also be appointed.

You are able to appoint a secretary to a Limited Company, although a secretary is no longer a requirement.

Timescale

Once all company information has been submitted to the company registrar, a Limited Company formation usually takes within 3 to 24 hours (dependent on the company registrar) and is then ready to trade. However; CFS have previously incorporated a company in 6 minutes.

Requirements for a Limited Company formation

  • The company name must end with either ‘Limited’ or ‘LTD’.
  • The Registered Office Address must be located in the UK. We can supply an address if required.
  • A Minimum of 1 Individual Director and 1 Shareholder must be appointed (they can be the same person.)
  • The Officers can be of any nationality and reside anywhere in the world.
  • Name and Address of the Director and Subscriber/Member. The directors’ and subscribers’ personal address is hidden from public record.
  • The minimum Share Capital is £0.01
  • There is no maximum Share Capital.
  • Minimum number of shares which must be issued is 1.
  • All company shares must be issued to a Shareholder

Why use CFS International for your Limited Company?

CFS International are highly experienced in setting up Limited Companies and their UK business start-up team are there to help you with your formation, from start to finish.

They have the ability to form your Limited Company electronically, eliminating the need to sign and complete any paperwork.

All details are entered online, before placing your order. Before you submit and pay for your company, you are able to review all company details you have provided. From here you can also amend anything, if necessary. Once your company has been incorporated you will receive your Certificate of Incorporation and Share Certificate(s) confirming the existence of your company plus many other fully completed documents in your Company Register.

The CFS standard package includes all the documents you need legally to start trading with your company. This is quite unique as most companies charge extra for providing a company register, share certificates, minutes of the first meeting etc.

CFS have the software which allows you to adopt/upload your own specific Articles of Association to your company, free of charge or alternatively you can use the model articles they provide.

Before doing anything, it is wise to consult with a lawyer and an accountant to have your options clarified and questions answered.

 

Select your package

By using this service you agree to the CFS International Formations Limited terms and conditions

US Businesses

Need to incorporate a C-corporation (USA clients)?   MyCorporation a leading provider of online document filing services for clients who wish to form a corporation or limited liability company. For more than twenty years, MyCorporation has helped small business clients and real estate investors incorporate their businesses in a reliable and affordable manner.

Start now
Guide written by Mycorporation
Read Original Guide

Choosing the Right Entity

When deciding to start a business, you might wonder which kind of business you should form. Your business’s structure should be chosen based on your particular needs. When creating your business, you have four basic entity types you can choose to use. Each one has its advantages and disadvantages, based on what you sell, your business’s finances, and the number of owners the business will have. The Questions to ask yourself: What type of business do I run? How many owners do I have? What is my financial situation? There is no one choice that suits every single business: Business owners have to select the structure that best fits their needs. Below we compare the most common business types you can form.

Sole Proprietorship

This is the simplest option of the four. Typically, when a business is starting out, the owner will not do much research into entity types, and this is the default option. Not only is it easy to create a sole proprietorship, but it also simplifies the tax process come April. All the owner has to do is report its profits or losses on their personal tax record, and that is it. However, this simple structure means it is tied to your personal assets. That means that if the business fails, you could lose your personal property and savings to pay for any lingering debt. You also will likely have to pay a self-employment tax on any profits you make, which could mean having to pay the government a substantial portion of profits earned.

Partnership

A general partnership is a lot like a sole proprietorship; if you are working with someone else, it is the default entity type for your business. But, like the sole proprietorship, a general partnership ties the business and personal assets of the partners together. If you choose, you could make a limited partnership as long as neither of the partners personally manages the affairs of the business. This lowers personal liability for business debts, but does not eliminate it. A partnership also raises issues of the ownership of ideas, if your business is built around one. The lack of inherent protection with these entities means that if, for whatever reason, one partner chooses to walk away, they may take the idea with them and kill whatever business had been made.

Corporation

This is a very common entity type, though the paperwork and effort involved in the incorporation process may scare some small business owners away. However, by incorporating, you are greatly protecting your personal assets by creating a separate entity from yourself. This does make accounting a bit more complicated, but you pay taxes based on what you choose to pay yourself from the corporation, which could mean less money being given to Uncle Sam and more to help your business along. Any ideas your business is built around also becomes the property of the corporation, and not the owners. After you incorporate, you could also choose to elect an S-Corporation status. What this effectively does is tax the shareholders, instead of the income of the corporation. Creating an S-Corporation, however, is complicated and you could actually get similar benefits from another entity that is much easier to create; the Limited Liability Company.

Limited Liability Company (LLC)

LLCs are very popular entity types because they give the owner, or owners, many more choices. Typically, owners can either opt for the tax structure of a corporation, in which the corporation’s income is taxed, or the pass-through structure of a partnership or a proprietorship, wherein personal income includes business profits and losses and is taxed accordingly. Some states have not changed their tax law to reflect the IRS’s ruling that this is allowed, so you should try and contact a professional from the state you are trying to form your company in. Whatever tax structure you choose, your personal assets are still afforded some protection if the business fails if you choose to form a LLC. When choosing the entity type right for you, be sure to consider the future needs and situation of your company, not just its position in the present. As was said before, there are pro’s and con’s to each type, but if you consider them carefully, the best fitting entity will likely be clear. Before doing anything, it is wise to consult with a lawyer and an accountant to have your options clarified and questions answered.

US Businesses

Need to incorporate a C-corporation (USA clients)? MyCorporation a leading provider of online document filing services for clients who wish to form a corporation or limited liability company. For more than twenty years, MyCorporation has helped small business clients and real estate investors incorporate their businesses in a reliable and affordable manner.

Start now

Guide written by Mycorporation
Read Original Guide

Choosing the Right Entity

When deciding to start a business, you might wonder which kind of business you should form. Your business’s structure should be chosen based on your particular needs. When creating your business, you have four basic entity types you can choose to use. Each one has its advantages and disadvantages, based on what you sell, your business’s finances, and the number of owners the business will have. The Questions to ask yourself: What type of business do I run? How many owners do I have? What is my financial situation? There is no one choice that suits every single business: Business owners have to select the structure that best fits their needs. Below we compare the most common business types you can form.

Sole Proprietorship

This is the simplest option of the four. Typically, when a business is starting out, the owner will not do much research into entity types, and this is the default option. Not only is it easy to create a sole proprietorship, but it also simplifies the tax process come April. All the owner has to do is report its profits or losses on their personal tax record, and that is it. However, this simple structure means it is tied to your personal assets. That means that if the business fails, you could lose your personal property and savings to pay for any lingering debt. You also will likely have to pay a self-employment tax on any profits you make, which could mean having to pay the government a substantial portion of profits earned.

Partnership

A general partnership is a lot like a sole proprietorship; if you are working with someone else, it is the default entity type for your business. But, like the sole proprietorship, a general partnership ties the business and personal assets of the partners together. If you choose, you could make a limited partnership as long as neither of the partners personally manages the affairs of the business. This lowers personal liability for business debts, but does not eliminate it. A partnership also raises issues of the ownership of ideas, if your business is built around one. The lack of inherent protection with these entities means that if, for whatever reason, one partner chooses to walk away, they may take the idea with them and kill whatever business had been made.

Corporation

This is a very common entity type, though the paperwork and effort involved in the incorporation process may scare some small business owners away. However, by incorporating, you are greatly protecting your personal assets by creating a separate entity from yourself. This does make accounting a bit more complicated, but you pay taxes based on what you choose to pay yourself from the corporation, which could mean less money being given to Uncle Sam and more to help your business along. Any ideas your business is built around also becomes the property of the corporation, and not the owners. After you incorporate, you could also choose to elect an S-Corporation status. What this effectively does is tax the shareholders, instead of the income of the corporation. Creating an S-Corporation, however, is complicated and you could actually get similar benefits from another entity that is much easier to create; the Limited Liability Company.

Limited Liability Company (LLC)

LLCs are very popular entity types because they give the owner, or owners, many more choices. Typically, owners can either opt for the tax structure of a corporation, in which the corporation’s income is taxed, or the pass-through structure of a partnership or a proprietorship, wherein personal income includes business profits and losses and is taxed accordingly. Some states have not changed their tax law to reflect the IRS’s ruling that this is allowed, so you should try and contact a professional from the state you are trying to form your company in. Whatever tax structure you choose, your personal assets are still afforded some protection if the business fails if you choose to form a LLC. When choosing the entity type right for you, be sure to consider the future needs and situation of your company, not just its position in the present. As was said before, there are pro’s and con’s to each type, but if you consider them carefully, the best fitting entity will likely be clear. Before doing anything, it is wise to consult with a lawyer and an accountant to have your options clarified and questions answered.