Company formation & filings
Company name change
A company's registered name is the one on its certificate of incorporation and the Companies House register, and it can be changed at any time by the members passing a special resolution, requiring 75% of the votes cast, or by the directors where the articles of association give them that power. The change is filed on form NM01 with a copy of the resolution and the Companies House fee, currently £20 for the standard online service and £85 for same-day processing as published on 25 September 2026. Companies House checks the new name against its rules and, if satisfied, issues a certificate of incorporation on change of name, from which date the new name takes effect. The company itself is unchanged: same number, same incorporation date, same contracts, assets and liabilities.
£49 · fixed + £20 Companies House fee · plus £20 Companies House fee
Next deadlines
- VAT return and payment for the quarter that ended last month
- Companies House identity verification for directors and PSCs, phased in from 18 November 2025
- VAT return and payment for the quarter that ended last month
- VAT return and payment for the quarter that ended last month
Fees
Packages, fixed and published
£49
Company name change (NM01)
£129
Same-day change (Companies House expedited fee included)
£69
Name change + HMRC and records update checklist
The Companies House fee of £20 is charged by Companies House, shown separately on your quote and passed on at cost. It is not part of our fee.
Who this is for
Company Name Change
Limited companies across the UK rebranding or repositioning, companies that incorporated under a placeholder name, businesses that have bought or sold a brand, companies resolving a name dispute or a Companies House direction to change, groups aligning subsidiary names, and dormant companies being brought into use under a new identity.
What is included
Inside the fixed fee
- Proposed name checked against the register, the "too like" rules and the sensitive-words list before anything is filed
- Special resolution drafted for members to pass, or the directors' resolution where the articles allow
- Form NM01 filed with Companies House with the £20 fee, or the same-day service where speed matters
- Certificate of incorporation on change of name delivered to you
- Checklist of everything else to update: HMRC, VAT, PAYE, bank, insurers, contracts, website and stationery
- Articles reviewed if they refer to the old name, with the amendment filed where needed
In detail
How company name change works
The constraints on the new name are where applications fail. It cannot be the same as, or too like, an existing registered name, with Companies House disregarding punctuation, certain words and common endings when comparing. It cannot suggest a connection with government or a public authority without permission, cannot include sensitive words such as "British", "Institute", "Bank" or "Royal" without the relevant body's consent, and cannot be offensive. Our free company name checker searches the register instantly, and we check the sensitive-words list and the "too like" rules before the resolution is drafted, so the application is not rejected after the members have voted.
Our standard fee is £49 plus the £20 Companies House fee, covering the name check, the resolution drafted for your articles, the NM01 filed online and the certificate delivered to you, typically within two working days. The same-day service at £129 includes the £85 Companies House same-day fee and is for changes a transaction, launch or legal deadline depends on, submitted before Companies House's 11am cut-off. The £69 package adds the full checklist of what must be updated afterwards, in order, with how to do each, because the filing is the short part of a name change and the tail is long.
That tail is where cost and risk accumulate. HMRC records for Corporation Tax, VAT and PAYE are separate and not all are updated automatically from Companies House; VAT in particular must be notified within 30 days. Banks and payment providers need the certificate. Insurers must be told or cover may be affected. Contracts and leases should be reviewed; most survive a name change because the legal person is the same, but some require notice. Domain names, trade marks, marketplace accounts, software licences and supplier accounts all need updating. And the registered name must appear on the website, business letters, invoices, emails and order forms from the certificate date, even if the business continues to trade under the old name as a trading style.
Some changes are not voluntary: Companies House can direct a company to change a name that is too like another, misleading, or registered to exploit someone else's goodwill, usually within twelve months of registration, and the company must comply within the period stated. Others are housekeeping, such as switching between "Limited" and "Ltd", or renaming a dormant company before bringing it into use for a new venture, which keeps dormancy intact provided the fees are paid personally. Where older bespoke articles refer to the company name, an amending resolution and the revised articles are filed alongside the NM01, and we review the articles as part of the service. Everything is online, fees are fixed and nothing is filed until you have approved it.
Process
From first message to filed
Scope the job
We find out what you need filed, when it is due and what state the records are in, and tell you which fixed-fee package applies.
Agree the price
The fee is confirmed in writing. There is no hourly billing and nothing added for questions during the work.
Hand over the records
Photographs, PDFs, software access or a spreadsheet, sent however suits you. We confirm what we have and what is missing within two working days.
Approve, then we submit
You review the draft with our explanation, sign off, and we file. Receipts, copies and the next deadlines come back to you immediately.
Worth knowing
Rules that come up in this work
The trading and property allowances
Small side incomes are covered by two £1,000 allowances, one for trading and one for property, which remove the need to register or report income below that level. Once income exceeds £1,000, the allowance can be used in place of expenses, a choice worth making deliberately: a freelancer with £900 of costs is better off with the allowance, one with £3,000 is not.
Dormant companies
Dormancy is a status that is easy to lose. The strict rule is no accounting transactions other than share capital and Companies House fees, which means no bank account activity at all in practice. Fees should be paid personally by the director. A company that traded and has stopped becomes dormant only after its final trading accounts and tax return are filed and HMRC is told.
Workplace pensions and auto-enrolment
Auto-enrolment duties begin the day you take on your first employee, not when the Pensions Regulator writes to you. Eligible staff must be enrolled, contributions paid every pay period and re-enrolment carried out every three years. Director-only companies without employment contracts are usually exempt. Fines for non-compliance are fixed and escalating.
Employer National Insurance
Since April 2025 employer National Insurance has been 15% on earnings above a £5,000 secondary threshold, a substantial increase for small employers. The Employment Allowance rose to £10,500 at the same time to soften it for the smallest businesses. Directors deciding their own salary weigh this cost against the Corporation Tax deduction a salary provides.
Allowable expenses
Expense claims are where a return is won or lost in an enquiry. The test is wholly and exclusively for the trade; where a cost is mixed, the business proportion can be claimed if it can be identified. Capital items such as equipment and vans are relieved through capital allowances rather than as expenses, except under the cash basis where they are simply deducted when paid.
Record keeping
HMRC requires records of all income and expenses, bank statements, invoices and receipts to be kept for at least five years after the 31 January filing deadline of the tax year they relate to, and companies must keep records for six years from the end of the accounting period. Digital copies are acceptable. Under Making Tax Digital the records must be kept in compatible software.
The 60-day property CGT return
The 60-day Capital Gains Tax return on residential property is the deadline landlords most often miss, because it falls outside the Self Assessment cycle and runs from completion, not exchange. Private residence relief for periods you lived in the property, plus the final nine months, reduces the gain. Penalties for a late return mirror Self Assessment, starting at £100.
Questions
Company Name Change: your questions answered
What does it cost in total?
A standard change is our £49 fee plus the Companies House fee of £20, so £69 in total, with the certificate usually issued within two working days. The same-day service is £129 all in, which includes the Companies House same-day fee of £85. The £69 package adds the full HMRC and records update checklist to the standard change.
How is a company name changed?
The members pass a special resolution, requiring 75% of votes, unless the articles allow the directors to change the name. Form NM01 is then filed at Companies House with a copy of the resolution and the fee. Companies House checks the new name, issues a certificate of incorporation on change of name, and the change takes effect from the certificate date.
What names are not allowed?
A name that is the same as or too like an existing registered name, one that suggests a connection with government or a public authority, one containing sensitive words or expressions without permission (such as "British", "Institute", "Bank"), or one that is offensive. Companies House has a free name checker, and our own tool checks the register instantly.
How long does it take?
Standard online applications are usually processed within two working days and the certificate is emailed. The same-day service guarantees processing the same day if the application is submitted before 11am. Preparing the resolution and checking the name takes us a day or less once you confirm the name.
Does changing the name change the company?
No. The company number, incorporation date, directors, shareholders, contracts, assets and liabilities are all unchanged. The company is the same legal person with a new name. This is why a name change is cheap and simple compared with forming a new company and transferring the business.
What do I have to update afterwards?
HMRC for Corporation Tax, VAT and PAYE; your bank and payment providers; insurers; Companies House-facing documents like the website, letterhead and invoices which must show the registered name; contracts and leases; domain names and trade marks; suppliers and customers. Our £69 package provides the full ordered checklist with how to do each.
Do I need to tell HMRC?
Yes. Corporation Tax, VAT and PAYE records are updated separately. VAT is changed through your business tax account or form VAT484 within 30 days. HMRC does not pick the change up automatically from Companies House in every case, so we list each notification on the checklist.
Can I keep trading under the old name?
You can use the old name as a trading name, but your registered name must appear on your website, business letters, invoices, emails and order forms. If you do use a trading name, letters and invoices should show both. Many companies keep a well-known old name as a trading style after rebranding the legal entity.
What if Companies House has directed us to change our name?
Companies House can direct a change where a name is too like another, misleading or was registered to exploit someone else's goodwill, usually within 12 months of registration. You must comply within the period stated. We handle the resolution and filing as a standard change and respond to the direction.
Do the articles of association need changing?
Only if they mention the company name, which older bespoke articles sometimes do. Model articles do not. If an amendment is needed, a further special resolution and the amended articles are filed alongside the NM01. We review your articles as part of the service.
Can a dormant company change its name?
Yes, and it is common when a dormant company is being brought into use for a new business. The process is the same. Paying our fee and the Companies House fee from the director's personal funds keeps the company dormant for accounts purposes until it actually starts trading.
What about the "Ltd" or "Limited" at the end?
A private limited company must end its name with "Limited" or "Ltd", or the Welsh equivalents "Cyfyngedig" or "Cyf" if registered in Wales, unless it is exempt as a charity or similar. You can switch between "Limited" and "Ltd" within the change. The ending is part of the name check.
Where
A national service
Company Name Change is a Companies House or HMRC filing that works identically wherever your business is based, so it has one page for the whole United Kingdom rather than a page for each town. The process, the fee and the turnaround are the same for a company in Belfast, Glasgow, Cardiff or London. England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland: all covered.
Related
Other services in company formation & filings
- Company Formation from £49
- Limited by Guarantee Formation from £49
- Dormant Company Formation from £29
- Non-Resident UK Company Formation from £149
- Registered Office Address from £69/yr
- Registered Office Address Change £29
- Confirmation Statement Filing £33
- Director Appointments & Resignations £29
- PSC Register Changes £39
- SIC Code Change £39
- VAT Registration £49
- PAYE Employer Registration £49
- UTR Registration £29
- CIS Registration £49
- Dormant Company Accounts £49
- Make a Company Dormant £44
- Company Strike-Off & Dissolution £59
Get company name change for a fixed fee
Tell us what you need. You get one fixed fee in writing, and nothing is filed until you approve it.