Register or change a SAIL address (AD02)
Use a single alternative inspection location, known as SAIL.
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How it works: Set up a SAIL address (AD02)
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
Register your company's SAIL address with Companies House using form AD02.
There is no Companies House fee; the SimpleFilings service fee is £4.99. A SAIL, or single alternative inspection location, is one place other than the registered office where a company can keep certain records for people to inspect.
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You tell Companies House about it with form AD02. Give us the address, we check it against the rules, and you approve the filing before it is submitted.
Registering the address is only the first step: moving records there is a separate notice, AD03.
What a SAIL address is and how AD02 registers it
AD02 is the Companies House form for telling them the address of a company's single alternative inspection location. Companies House offers an online service and a paper form sent by post. GOV.UK says paper forms take longer to process.
To file online you need the company authentication code. This is the 6 character code sent to the registered office.
Companies House needs to know where certain records are kept, because people have a right to inspect them. By default that place is the registered office. A SAIL lets the company keep them somewhere else, such as its accountant's or solicitor's office, while the registered office stays where it is.
SAIL address rules: one address, same part of the UK
The rules are in regulation 3 of the Companies (Company Records) Regulations 2008. A SAIL must be in the same part of the UK where the company is registered: England and Wales, Scotland, or Northern Ireland. A company registered in England and Wales cannot use a Scottish address as its SAIL.
A company can only have one SAIL. Every record the company keeps away from its registered office must be kept at that same address. You cannot keep the register of members at one place and resolutions at another.
The SAIL address must be notified to Companies House before it counts as the company's alternative inspection location. The address appears on the company's public record.
Before you start: AD02 checklist
- The full SAIL address, including postcode.
- Confirmation that the address is in the same part of the UK as the registered office.
- Permission to use the address. If it belongs to an accountant, solicitor or other provider, get their agreement first.
- Someone at the address who can make the records available when a person asks to inspect them.
- The company authentication code, and authority to make the filing for the company.
- The authenticating person’s full printed name and capacity, such as director or secretary. These details appear on the public record.
- A list of the records you plan to move there, ready for the separate AD03 notice.
Which company records can be kept at a SAIL
Section 1136 of the Companies Act 2006 lists the records that can be kept at a SAIL. They include the register of members, directors' service contracts and indemnities, records of resolutions, contracts and documents about a company buying back or redeeming its own shares, the register of debenture holders, and copies of instruments creating charges.
Since 18 November 2025, companies no longer keep their own registers of directors, directors' residential addresses, secretaries or people with significant control. Companies House holds that information on its register instead. Those registers are no longer records you need to move to a SAIL.
Accounting records are covered by different rules. Under section 388 they are kept at the registered office or another place the directors think fit, so a SAIL is not needed for them.
AD02, AD03 and AD04: what each form does
AD02 registers the SAIL address, or tells Companies House about a new one. On its own it does not say that any records are kept there.
AD03 tells Companies House which records are now held at the SAIL. File it when records actually move. You can register the SAIL and move records at the same time.
AD04 tells Companies House that records have moved back from the SAIL to the registered office.
For the register of members, section 114 requires the company to notify Companies House of where it is kept and of any change. If the company is in default for 14 days, the company and every officer in default commit an offence and can be fined.
See also: Move records to a SAIL address (AD03) · Move records back to the registered office (AD04)
What happens after you order your AD02
Find your company and enter the SAIL address. We check it is a full address in the right part of the UK and ask about anything missing or unclear. You approve the filing before it is submitted.
The public record changes only when Companies House accepts the filing. Payment, or a submission receipt, does not on its own mean the notice has been accepted.
After acceptance, move the records and file AD03 to say which records are held there. Members can inspect the register of members free of charge. Other people can inspect it too, and may be charged a fee.
Common SAIL address mistakes
- Choosing an address in a different part of the UK from the registered office.
- Trying to split records across two alternative addresses. Only one SAIL is allowed.
- Filing AD02 and assuming the records have officially moved. That needs AD03.
- Moving records to an address that has not been notified to Companies House.
- Using AD02 when you actually want to change the registered office. That uses AD01.
- Forgetting AD04 when the records come back to the registered office.
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
- The inspection address must be in the same UK jurisdiction as the registered office.
- Moving records to that address also requires AD03.
- We check the named authenticator's capacity and authority against the current register or supplied authority evidence before payment. The current AD02 requires their printed name, not a signature. Specialist capacities and UK Societas cases require route review.
Fees
£4.99 SimpleFilings service fee. Companies House does not charge a fee to file an AD02. The service covers one AD02 notice setting or changing the company's SAIL address. It does not include providing an address, storing or moving your records, the separate AD03 notice, or legal advice.
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 .
- Register a single alternative inspection location (AD02)
- Move your company's records to the single alternative inspection location (AD03)
- Move your company's records to the registered office (AD04)
- Companies House forms: file a change of address
- Running a limited company: company and accounting records
- Companies (Company Records) Regulations 2008, regulation 3
- Companies Act 2006, section 1136: where certain company records may be kept
- Companies Act 2006, section 114: register of members to be kept available for inspection
- Companies Act 2006, section 116: rights to inspect and require copies
- Companies Act 2006, section 388: where and for how long accounting records are kept
- Companies House fees
Set up a SAIL address (AD02): common questions
What is a SAIL address?
A single alternative inspection location. It is one address, other than the registered office, where a company keeps certain records available for inspection, such as the register of members.
Is there a Companies House fee for AD02?
No. Companies House does not charge to file an AD02. If you use SimpleFilings, the only charge is the £4.99 SimpleFilings service fee.
Can my SAIL address be in a different part of the UK?
No. It must be in the part of the UK where the company is registered: England and Wales, Scotland, or Northern Ireland.
Do I need AD03 as well as AD02?
Yes, if you are moving records. AD02 registers the SAIL address. AD03 tells Companies House which records are held there.
Is a SAIL the same as a registered office?
No. The registered office is the company's official address for post and legal notices. A SAIL is only where certain records are kept for inspection. Changing the registered office uses AD01.
Can a company have more than one SAIL?
No. A company can have only one SAIL, and all records kept away from the registered office must be kept there.