Is shareholder information made publicly available?

When you own shares in a UK private limited company, certain details may become available on the public register. If that sounds concerning, you’re not alone. However, this transparency is a legal requirement under the Companies Act 2006 and strengthened by subsequent legislation, including the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023.

In exchange for limited liability, private limited companies must be open about who owns and controls them. That includes keeping records and filing shareholder information with Companies House, with many of those details accessible online by anyone.

Read on to learn what’s made public, what stays private, and how you can protect your personal details while staying compliant.

What shareholder information is public in the UK?

Some shareholder information is publicly available on Companies House because UK company law requires businesses to be open about who owns and controls them.

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A company’s shareholders are first recorded at incorporation. Each year, the company files a confirmation statement (Form CS01) to update Companies House of any changes to shareholder details since the last filing. If nothing has changed since the last filing, the company simply confirms that the existing information is still correct.

In addition, the company must keep its own register of members, which shareholders and anyone with a “proper purpose” have the legal right to inspect. Exactly what appears on the public register depends on whether a person became a shareholder at incorporation, became a shareholder later, or qualifies as a person with significant control (PSC).

Below is a breakdown of what appears on the public register for each type of shareholder.

Shareholders who join after incorporation

For shareholders who become members after the company is formed, Companies House may display their name, the number and class of shares they hold, and the date they became a shareholder. Residential addresses and dates of birth are not shown.

First shareholders (subscribers at incorporation)

First shareholders (also known as subscribers) are the people or companies who take the first shares when a company is formed. Their names and shareholdings appear on the public formation documents in the same way as any later shareholder’s details appear on confirmation statements.

In addition, the incorporation Form IN01, which appears on the public record, includes the subscriber’s supplied correspondence address. If their home address is used at formation, it will appear on the public incorporation document. You will see this wording under F3 “Initial shareholdings” when you fill out IN01: “The addresses will appear on the public record. These do not need to be the subscribers’ usual residential address.”

For privacy, many first shareholders (typically the founders) choose to use a professional service address instead of their home address.

People with significant control (PSCs)

A shareholder may also be classified as a person with significant control (PSC) if they hold more than 25% of the company’s shares or voting rights. If they are a PSC, Companies House displays additional information about them on the public register, including their name, month and year of birth, nationality, country of residence, service address, and the nature of their control.

Because the service address is shown publicly, most PSCs and directors use a non-residential service address to keep their home address off the public record. In practice, this means that share ownership details are often publicly available, but personal residential details are not.

What details must be shared with Companies House?

When you become a shareholder in a UK company, the company has to report certain details about you to Companies House. Exactly what gets filed depends on when you take your shares and whether you also have another role in the business, such as director or PSC.

Always required

• Your full name
• Your shareholding details – including the class, number, currency, and nominal value of shares, plus the amount paid (or agreed to be paid)

Required in specific cases

• Your address – if you’re a first shareholder, you must provide an address as part of the incorporation filing
• PSC details – if, as a result of your shareholdings, you qualify as a person with significant control, you must provide additional information, including your name, date of birth, nationality, country of residence, home address, service address, and the nature of your control.

Who qualifies as a person with significant control (PSC)?

If you’re a shareholder, you may also be classified as a PSC if you meet one or more of these conditions:

• Holds more than 25% of the shares in the company
• Holds more than 25% of the voting rights
• Has the right to appoint or remove a majority of directors
• Otherwise exercises significant influence or control over the company
• Has the right to exercise significant influence or control over a trust or firm that meets any of the above conditions

This matters because PSCs face stricter disclosure requirements than other shareholders. If you qualify as a PSC, your details, including your name, month and year of birth, nationality, country of residence, service address, and the nature of your control, will be displayed on the public register at Companies House.

What PSC details appear on the public register?

Each PSC must supply to Companies House:

• Full name
• Date of birth
• Nationality and country of residence
• Service address (regardless of when they take shares)
• Home address (not made public)
• Date they became a PSC
• Nature of their control (for example, ‘owns more than 25% of shares’)

Most of this appears on the public register, except for the home address and the day element of the birth date, which remain private.

How to file and update PSC information

PSC details must be filed either during company formation (as part of the incorporation application) or on Form PSC01 (Notice of individual person with significant control) if they become a PSC after incorporation.

If there are any changes to a PSC’s details, Companies House must be notified within 28 days. Since November 2025, PSC information is held centrally at Companies House – companies no longer need to maintain their own internal PSC register.

How to find shareholder and PSC information online

You can search the Companies House register at no cost to see basic shareholder and PSC information for any UK company. Here’s how:

1. Go to www.gov.uk/get-information-about-a-company.
2. Enter the company name or number
3. Select the relevant company from the search results.
4. Click the Filing history tab.
5. Filter by category and tick ‘Confirmation statement / Annual returns’.
6. Choose View PDF next to the most recent confirmation statement ‘with updates’.
7. If the statement doesn’t list shareholders, check earlier confirmation statements or scroll to the bottom for the Incorporation filing.
8. Open the document and locate the section titled ‘Initial Shareholdings’. This section shows the names of shareholders and their share allocations.
9. To see PSC details, select the People tab and click ‘People with significant control’.

The register is updated when companies file their annual confirmation statement or submit changes to their PSC records.

While the information is usually accurate, bear in mind that companies only need to report shareholder changes once a year, so there may be a short delay between a transaction and its appearance online.

What is the register of members, and how is it used?

Alongside the Companies House record, every company must maintain its own internal register of members. This statutory document acts as the definitive record of who owns the company.

The register of members must contain:

• Each shareholder’s full name
• Their relevant address (regardless of when they became a shareholder)
• Details of shareholdings – class, quantity, currency, and nominal value
• The date they became a member
• The date they ceased to be a member (if applicable)

By law, you need to keep this register accurate and up to date at all times. If anything changes – such as new share issues, transfers, or updates to a member’s name – you must record it as soon as possible. This is important because it’s the register of members that gives the ultimate legal effect to changes in share ownership.

The register of members isn’t visible on the public register online. That said, it’s still a legal requirement, and you’ll need to keep it at your registered office or Single Alternative Inspection Location (SAIL) address and make it available for inspection if someone requests it.

Who can access the register of members?

The register of members should be available for inspection at the company’s registered office or its SAIL.

Anyone can request to inspect it, but they must state their name, address, and purpose. Under Section 116 of the Companies Act 2006, a company may apply to court to refuse access if the purpose isn’t considered ‘proper’ – for example, if it appears to be for marketing or commercial gain.

Companies can charge a small fee for inspection or for providing a copy. Shareholders themselves can inspect the register at any time, free of charge.

Who uses shareholder data, and why?

With over 16.5 billion searches conducted on the Companies House register in a single year, a wide range of people and organisations use shareholder information. These include:

• Investors and lenders, who verify who owns and controls a business before extending credit or capital
• Credit reference agencies, which use this data to create commercial credit reports that affect access to trade credit and loans
• Customers and business partners who check Companies House to confirm a company’s legal status and credibility before entering into contracts. Regulatory bodies also use shareholder data to combat financial crime, fraud, and money laundering, with the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 recently strengthening Companies House’s role in company oversight.

Why is shareholder transparency required?

With 5.43 million companies on the UK register as of March 2025, the public register plays a central role in the UK’s company system. It allows investors, regulators, lenders, and the wider public to confirm that a company exists, who runs it, and how it’s owned.

When you run a limited company, the law gives you the benefit of limited liability, which keeps your personal finances separate from the business. In return, the company operates in a transparent environment where ownership and control are visible to the outside world.

How to protect your address as a shareholder or PSC

As a first shareholder, PSC, director, or company secretary, your service address you provide will appear on the public register – even if you later change it or leave the company.

If you’re setting up a company as a first shareholder, the address you provide on the incorporation application will also appear on the public formation record.

To protect your privacy, use a professional registered office address service. If you run your company from home, this prevents your residential address from appearing on the public record.

In some cases, you can also apply to Companies House to remove a home address from historical filings – for example, where it was mistakenly used as a service address. This is subject to Companies House’s approval and is only granted in specific circumstances. You can also suppress old residential addresses that were once used as registered offices.

When can you request additional protection from Companies House?

In exceptional circumstances, you can apply to Companies House to protect your information if your company’s activities put you, or anyone living with you, at serious risk of violence or intimidation.

There are two levels of protection:

• Protecting your home address from being shared with credit reference agencies (for PSCs or directors)
• Protecting all personal information from appearing publicly (for PSCs)

If you’re a PSC, you can apply for both types of protection at once. In that case, none of your personal data will appear on the public register or be shared with credit reference agencies.

For most business owners, using a non-residential registered office and service address provides enough privacy while keeping your company fully compliant.

Choosing the right address service provider

If you’re considering a service address or registered office provider, consider the following:

• Reputation and track record – check customer reviews on Trustpilot or Google to gauge reliability and service quality
• Legal compliance – ensure the address is a physical UK location in the correct jurisdiction (not a PO Box)
• Service inclusions – confirm what’s covered, including mail scanning, forwarding speed, and any volume limits
• Contract flexibility – choose a provider that allows you to adapt as your business grows
• Additional services – consider whether bundled services like mail redirection or call forwarding add value

At Quality Company Formations, our address services keep your home address private while ensuring you meet all Companies House requirements.

Protecting shareholder privacy

Understanding what shareholder information is public helps you run your company responsibly. Some details must always be visible, but you have clear options to protect what matters most.

Using professional addresses, keeping your filings accurate, and reviewing your public profile regularly are simple ways to stay secure while upholding your company’s credibility.

At Quality Company Formations, we provide trusted company formation services with registered office options, helping you stay compliant, credible, and confident as your business grows.

Speak to us today about setting up a registered office, or start your company with QCF to build the right foundations from day one.