Report a company secretary’s resignation or removal (TM02)
Record the actual end of one secretary's appointment.
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How it works: Remove a secretary (TM02)
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 remove a company secretary, file form TM02 with Companies House within 14 days of the appointment ending.
There is no Companies House fee; the SimpleFilings service fee is £4.99. This request covers whether your company needs a secretary at all, and the mistakes that leave the register wrong.
Read more
Our service checks your instructions and files the TM02 once you approve it.
How to remove a company secretary at Companies House
A secretary's appointment ends inside the company first. Companies House only records it. The secretary has resigned, the directors have ended the appointment, or it has ended for another reason under the company's articles. The company then reports the end date on form TM02, "Termination of appointment of secretary".
TM02 is used for both individual and corporate secretaries. It can be filed online or on the paper form. Companies House says paper forms take longer to process, and a company in the PROOF (PROtected Online Filing) scheme must not use the paper form.
Filing the form does not itself end anyone's appointment. If the secretary has not actually resigned or been removed, reporting it does not make it so.
TM02 checklist: what you need
- The secretary's name exactly as it appears on the public register.
- The date the appointment ended. This is the actual effective termination date, which may differ from when a notice or decision was written.
- The company authentication code, which lets the filing be made for the company.
- Evidence the appointment has ended, such as a dated resignation letter or board minutes. Keep these with the company records.
- Check the articles’ secretary requirements. If a public company will have a vacancy, choose compliance review so replacement arrangements and timely notification can be coordinated.
- A note of any other roles the person holds, such as director, shareholder or person with significant control (PSC). Those need separate action.
The 14-day deadline
GOV.UK says you must tell Companies House within 14 days if there are changes to company secretaries, including ending an existing secretary's appointment. The 14 days run from the date the appointment ended.
Late updates leave the public register wrong. Banks, suppliers and anyone checking the company may still see the old secretary listed as acting for it.
Does a private limited company need a company secretary?
No. Under section 270 of the Companies Act 2006, a private company is not required to have a secretary. Where there is no secretary, anything that would have been done by the secretary can be done by a director or by someone the directors authorise.
Check your articles of association first. Some older articles say the company must have a secretary, or set out how one is appointed and removed. If yours do, you may need to appoint a replacement or change the articles.
A public company must have a secretary under section 271. A public company that removes its secretary needs to appoint a new one. Appointing an individual secretary is a separate AP03 filing.
Company secretary resignation: how it works
A secretary usually resigns by giving written notice to the company. The letter should give their name, the company name and number, and the date the resignation takes effect. Ask the directors to acknowledge it in writing.
Check your articles to see who can appoint and remove the secretary. In many companies this is a decision for the directors. Check any service contract before acting too. Ending the appointment does not end any separate job, consultancy or shareholding the person has with the company.
Since 18 November 2025, companies no longer keep their own register of secretaries. The Companies House register is the record, which is why the TM02 date and name need to be right.
What happens after you start your TM02
Find your company and choose the secretary from the current officer list. Enter the actual date their secretary appointment ended and confirm lawful termination, authority and the articles requirements. We check that the date is not before their appointment date, ask about anything missing or unclear, and then ask you to approve the filing before it is submitted.
The secretary stays on the register until Companies House accepts the TM02. A paid order or a submission receipt does not mean the TM02 has been accepted. Keep a copy of what was filed and check the officer list afterwards. The person's past appointment stays visible on the public register as a resigned officer. That is normal.
Common TM02 mistakes to avoid
- Using TM01 by mistake. TM01 is for directors. A secretary is removed with TM02.
- Entering the filing date instead of the date the appointment actually ended.
- Overlooking a public-company secretary vacancy. It needs compliance review and replacement arrangements; an actual departure must still be reported on time.
- Using TM02 when the secretary is staying and only their name or correspondence address has changed. That is a CH03 change of details.
- Forgetting that the person may also be a director. Their director appointment is separate and needs its own TM01 if it is ending too.
- Missing the 14-day window because the resignation letter sat unread for weeks.
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
- A private company does not need a secretary unless its articles require one. A public company needs a secretary; a vacancy needs compliance review and replacement coordination while the actual departure is still notified on time.
- This service reports one already effective individual or corporate secretary termination using the ordinary online route. It does not itself end an appointment. We verify authority and company authentication before payment.
- Paper and specialist routes need separate review. Paper TM02 requires the authenticator’s printed name in a permitted capacity, without a handwritten signature. Permitted capacities include director, secretary, person authorised under sections 270/274, liquidator, administrator, administrative receiver, receiver, receiver manager, Charity Commission receiver and manager, CIC manager and judicial factor. PROOF companies must use online filing. All TM02 information is public; title and presenter contacts are optional. No birth date, personal code or mandatory supporting attachment is required.
Fees
£4.99 SimpleFilings service fee. Companies House does not charge a fee to report that a secretary's appointment has ended. You can also file TM02 yourself, free, through the official Companies House service.
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 .
- Terminate an appointment of a secretary (TM02)
- File changes to a company with Companies House
- Running a limited company: company changes you must report
- Verifying your identity for Companies House
- Companies House fees
- 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 275 (omitted from 18 November 2025): register of secretaries
Remove a secretary (TM02): common questions
Is there a Companies House fee to remove a company secretary?
No. TM02 has no Companies House fee. If you file through SimpleFilings, our service fee is £4.99. Filing TM02 yourself with Companies House costs nothing.
How long do I have to tell Companies House a secretary has resigned?
14 days from the date the secretary's appointment ended. The date on TM02 is the date the appointment ended, not the date you file.
Do I have to appoint a new secretary after removing one?
Not for a private company, unless your articles say it must have one. A private company is not required to have a secretary. A public company must always have a secretary, so it needs to appoint a replacement.
Does a company secretary need to verify their identity with Companies House?
No. Identity verification applies to directors, people with significant control and some others, but GOV.UK does not list company secretaries. Removing a secretary does not need a personal code.
Can TM02 remove a corporate secretary?
Yes. Companies House says TM02 is used to end the appointment of an individual or a corporate secretary.
Will the secretary's name disappear from the public register?
No. Their appointment will show as resigned, with the end date. Past officers stay in the company's officer history on the public register.