How to start a business in the UK remotely in 2020?

Many believe that Britain is a very conservative country, whose traditions and laws have not changed for decades. Meanwhile, its economic innovations can be envied by any of the member states of the European Union, and the remote opening of the company in the UK in 2020 migrated from the ranks of daring business fantasies to reality. The procedure has been simplified to the limit.

Common legal forms of companies in the United Kingdom

• LTD is a privately owned limited liability company. It is the most common company type in the UK;
• LLP - limited liability partnership. Suitable for small and medium businesses;
• LP - limited partnership;
• PLC - open joint-stock company;
• PUC - a company with unlimited liability, privately owned.

Package of documents confirming the founder’s intention to establish a company can be sent to specialized bodies for consideration in electronic form. The terms of approval of the application depend primarily on the chosen form of organizational and legal ownership, the absence of errors in filling out the forms and the correctness of the copies of documents. On average, the registration process takes from several hours to 3-4 days. Certificate of Incorporation, which allows the company to operate in the UK, is also issued electronically. It turns out that the registration of the company in the UK in 2020 can be carried out completely remotely and in the shortest possible time.

However, the difficulties associated with bureaucratic delays will not be completely avoided, and to minimize them, you will need to take advantage of the support of professionals. IT-OFFSHORE has many years of experience in setting up and supporting foreign companies. Our specialists can offer several service options to choose from, and can advise on United Kingdom taxation issues.

Opening the company in the UK in 2020: steps

• Select the activity of the future firm and assign codes to it (similar to OKVED);
• Create a unique name for the company (at least 3 options to choose from) that meets the requirements of the law;
• Develop the charter and, if necessary, the foundation agreement;
• Determine the minimum amount of own (charter or share) capital (usually at least £1,000) and the number of shareholders;
• Identify the number of beneficial owners and their powers;
• Appoint directors and secretaries, may be nominal and not necessarily local;
• Select an office space for the future company. Presence of the actual specified address can be checked at any time by controlling authorities;
• Select suitable banks or electronic payment systems to open a corporate current account.

In addition to company registration in the UK, tax returns are remotely filed once a year through a dedicated electronic portal. The audit can also be carried out remotely and is required only when the annual profit of the company exceeds 6.5 million pounds sterling, and the number of employees in the company exceeds 50 people.