Appoint a company secretary at Companies House (AP03)
Appoint an individual company secretary.
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How it works: Appoint a secretary (AP03)
Find your company
Search by name or number. We fill in the public details.
Answer the questions
Answer only what the register cannot tell us.
Pay by card
Approve the details and pay the total shown.
We submit to Companies House
We check it and send it to Companies House. Updates come by email.
About this filing
To appoint a company secretary, file form AP03 with Companies House within 14 days of the appointment.
There is no Companies House fee; the SimpleFilings service fee is £4.99. Our service reports one new individual secretary.
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You give us the secretary's name, any former names, their correspondence address and the appointment date. We check the details and you approve the filing before it is submitted.
A private limited company does not have to have a secretary, so this is only needed if your company has chosen to appoint one.
How to appoint a company secretary at Companies House
AP03 is the Companies House form for appointing an individual as secretary of a company. Companies House asks you to use its online service where you can, because paper forms sent by post take longer to process. If the company has signed up to the PROOF scheme, do not use the paper form.
The company must tell Companies House within 14 days of appointing a new secretary. The appointment date is the date the person actually became secretary, not the date you file.
The filing is made for the company, so you need the company authentication code. This is the 6 character code Companies House sends to the registered office.
Do you need a company secretary at all?
No. Since 6 April 2008, a private company has not been required to have a secretary. If there is no secretary, anything that would have been done by or sent to the secretary can be done by a director or by someone the directors authorise.
Some companies still appoint one to take on some of the directors' responsibilities. Even then, the directors remain legally responsible for the company. Check the company's articles of association, as some older articles still refer to a secretary.
A public company must have a secretary, and there are extra rules about who can hold the role. If your company is a public company, check those rules before you file.
See also: whether your company needs a secretary, and who can be one
What you need to add a company secretary
- The appointment date. It cannot be in the future.
- The secretary's full forenames and complete surname separately. Title-based or protected former-name cases need separate review.
- Confirmation of any reportable former names used for business in the last 20 years, followed by every applicable name if there are any.
- A correspondence (service) address. This appears on the public register. It must be a physical address, not a PO Box, DX or LP number. It can be the company's registered office.
- Confirmation that the person has agreed to act as secretary.
- Confirmation that they are not the company’s auditor and the appointment is approved. For a public company, the directors’ competence assessment and actual statutory qualification basis are required.
- The company authentication code, so the filing can be made for the company.
Who can be a company secretary
A director can also be the company secretary. The company's auditor cannot be its secretary.
AP03 is only for individuals. A company or firm acting as secretary is a corporate secretary and is appointed with a different form, AP04. That route is not covered by this service.
Unlike a director, a secretary does not give a date of birth, nationality or home address on AP03. Everything on the form appears on the public register, so do not put a home address in the correspondence address unless you are happy for it to be public.
Does a company secretary need to verify their identity?
Identity verification is currently required for directors and people with significant control. Companies House's identity verification guidance does not list company secretaries, and AP03 does not ask for a personal code.
If the secretary is also a director, or becomes one, they need to verify their identity for that director role. Companies House has said that identity checks for people who file on behalf of companies will be introduced later.
What happens after you start your AP03
Search for your company, then add the secretary's name, any former names, their correspondence address and the date they took the role. We compare these with what AP03 asks for and come back to you if something is missing or looks wrong. Nothing is sent until you approve it.
The new secretary shows on the company's public record once Companies House has accepted the filing. Paying us, or getting a submission receipt, is not the same as acceptance. Save the approved AP03 with the company's papers.
Companies stopped keeping their own register of secretaries on 18 November 2025. The secretary's details now live only on the Companies House register, so a wrong address or a missed former name stays public until it is corrected. A board minute recording the decision to appoint can still go in the company's minute book.
Common AP03 mistakes to avoid
- Missing the 14 day window because the appointment was agreed weeks before anyone filed.
- Putting a home address in the correspondence address box when it should stay private.
- Using a PO Box as the correspondence address.
- Leaving out former names used for business, such as a previous surname.
- Filing without the person's agreement to act as secretary.
- Using AP03 when the details of an existing secretary have changed. A change of name or correspondence address uses CH03 instead.
- Using AP03 for a company or firm. A corporate secretary is appointed with AP04.
Changing or removing a company secretary instead
If the person is already the secretary and only their name or correspondence address has changed, use our change secretary details service (CH03). If someone has stopped being secretary, the end of the appointment is reported with TM02, also within 14 days.
If you are replacing one secretary with another, the new appointment and the old resignation are two separate filings.
File it yourself or use SimpleFilings
You can always file directly with Companies House. Here is how that compares with using SimpleFilings.
| Question | File it yourself | Use SimpleFilings |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | No fee | £4.99 (no Companies House fee) |
| Who fills in the form | You complete the Companies House form yourself. Official guidance | We do, from your answers, after checking the public register |
| Approval | You submit it yourself | You confirm you are authorised and approve the details before we submit |
What this request covers
We check your instructions and submit the filing once it is approved. The register changes only when Companies House accepts it.
Before you start
- Ordinary online appointment of one individual secretary only. Corporate secretaries use AP04. UK Societas, restoration and specialist company or protected-name routes need separate review.
- Public companies require a director-confirmed statutory qualification and competence assessment. We review the actual basis before payment.
- Online company authentication is required. Paper AP03 has separate printed-name authentication, without a handwritten signature; PROOF companies must not use paper.
Fees
£4.99 SimpleFilings service fee. Companies House does not charge a fee to appoint a secretary using AP03. The service covers one supported AP03 appointment of an individual secretary. It does not include legal advice on whether to appoint a secretary, drafting board minutes, or appointing a corporate secretary.
No Companies House filing fee for this standard filing.
Total: £4.99. There is no Companies House fee for this standard filing.
Step by step
- Find your company. Find your company by name or number. We fill in its public details from the Companies House register, such as the registered office, officers and people with significant control.
- Answer the questions. Answer only the questions we cannot fill in from the register, add any documents asked for and give the email address for your receipt and filing updates. Confirm that you are authorised to arrange the request and that you have checked and approve the details.
- Pay by card. Approve the details and pay the total shown by secure card payment. We check your answers before preparing the filing. There is no Companies House fee for this standard filing.
- We submit to Companies House. We check your answers and any documents, then submit to Companies House. Updates go to your email, and you can follow progress through your private request link. A payment receipt is not confirmation that Companies House has accepted the filing.
Official sources
Guidance checked .
- Appoint a secretary (AP03)
- Running a limited company: company information you must report
- Set up a limited company: appoint directors and company secretaries
- File changes to a company with Companies House
- Verifying your identity for Companies House
- Companies Act 2006, section 270: private company not required to have secretary
- Companies Act 2006, section 271: public company required to have secretary
- Companies Act 2006, section 277 (omitted from 18 November 2025): particulars of secretaries
- Companies House fees
Appoint a secretary (AP03): common questions
Does my limited company have to have a company secretary?
Not if it is a private company. A private company has not needed a secretary since 6 April 2008. A public company must have one.
Is there a Companies House fee to appoint a company secretary?
No. Companies House does not charge to file an AP03. If you use SimpleFilings, the only charge is the £4.99 SimpleFilings service fee.
How long do I have to tell Companies House about a new secretary?
Within 14 days of the date the person became secretary.
Does this service change or remove an existing secretary?
No. This service files an AP03 for a new secretary. Use our change secretary details service (CH03) if an existing secretary's name or address has changed, or our remove a company secretary service (TM02) when an appointment ends.
Does a new secretary have to verify their identity first?
Not at the moment. AP03 does not ask for a personal code, and the secretary role is not on Companies House's current list of people who must verify. A secretary who is also a director must verify for the director role.
What details about a company secretary are public?
Everything on AP03 appears on the public register: the name, any former names, the correspondence address and the appointment date. The form does not ask for a date of birth or home address.