Cross-border
How to Register a UK Company from Pakistan
A Pakistani resident can be the sole director and shareholder of a UK private limited company, and the whole registration runs online. What you cannot supply from Pakistan is the registered office: it must be a physical UK address. Companies House charges £100 to incorporate online since 1 February 2026, every director must verify their identity first, and the company then owes a confirmation statement, annual accounts and a Company Tax Return every year.
We do this for clients:UK Company Formation from PakistanUK VAT & Corporation Tax
Where these figures come from
- Sources
- Sourced from the Companies Act 2006, Companies House fees and guidance, and HMRC's Corporation Tax guidance.
- Last checked against the sources
- by BarrioVibe.
This is general guidance from the sources above, not advice on your situation. Procedures and official fees change, so confirm the current position before you file, or speak to us first.
Who can be a director and a shareholder
Nationality and residence are not conditions. The gov.uk guidance says it directly: directors do not have to live in the UK, but the company must have a UK registered office address. A private company needs at least one director, who must be 16 or over, and at least one shareholder, who can be the same person. A company secretary is optional.
So a single Pakistani founder holding 100% of the shares and acting as the only director is a normal, lawful structure. What changed in November 2025 is that the director has to verify their identity with Companies House before the company can be registered at all. That process has its own guide, linked below, because the timetable is the part most people get wrong.
The three addresses, and which ones must be in the UK
People run these together, and only one of them has to be British.
| Address | Must it be in the UK? | Is it public? |
|---|---|---|
| Registered office | Yes, a physical address in the same UK nation the company is registered in | Yes |
| Director's service address | No | Yes |
| Director's and PSC's home address | No | No. It is given to Companies House but not disclosed |
Registering, in order
- 1
Verify every director's identity
Each director gets an 11-character Companies House personal code from identity verification, and the registration asks for every director's code. Do this first, because nothing else can be filed without it.
- 2
Choose the name and check it
Check availability on the Companies House register, and check existing UK trade marks as the gov.uk step-by-step suggests. A name without "Limited" has to be registered by post rather than online.
- 3
Pick the SIC code from the condensed list
Companies House uses a condensed version of the ONS SIC 2007 list and warns that a code not on that list may get the filing rejected. Pick the code for what the company will actually do. It can be changed later through the confirmation statement.
- 4
Identify the PSCs
A person with significant control is usually anyone with more than 25% of the shares or votes, the power to appoint or remove a majority of directors, or other significant influence or control. Their details go in at incorporation, including a home address that is not published. If there is genuinely no PSC, the company must file a statement saying so: the PSC section cannot be blank.
- 5
Prepare the constitution and file
Memorandum, articles and a statement of capital. Online registration costs £100 and usually completes within 24 hours. The company needs its own Government Gateway user ID for this; a personal one cannot be used. A paper IN01 costs £124 and takes 8 to 10 days.
Corporation Tax, the UTR, and the three-month clock
Registering online with Companies House usually sets the company up for Corporation Tax at the same time. HMRC then issues a 10-digit Unique Taxpayer Reference; if it has not arrived within 15 working days, it can be requested online.
The clock that matters starts when the company begins to do business, which gov.uk defines broadly: buying, selling, advertising, renting a property or employing someone. That date starts the first accounting period, and section 55 of the Finance Act 2004 requires notice to HMRC no later than three months after it. A company that has registered but not started is usually dormant for Corporation Tax.
When the Corporation Tax service is added to the business tax account, HMRC posts an activation code within 10 days, or 21 days if you live abroad, to the registered office. This is the practical reason the registered office has to be one where someone will open your post and tell you.
What the company files every year
Three obligations to two bodies, on three different clocks. A loss, or no trading, does not remove any of them.
| Filing | Where | Deadline | Cost or consequence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Confirmation statement | Companies House | At least every 12 months, up to 14 days after the review period ends | £50 online. Not filing can mean a fine of up to £5,000 and strike-off |
| Annual accounts | Companies House | First accounts 21 months after registration, then 9 months after each year end | Automatic penalty from £150 to £1,500 by lateness, doubled if late 2 years running |
| Corporation Tax payment | HMRC | 9 months and 1 day after the accounting period ends | Paid before the return is due |
| Company Tax Return (CT600) | HMRC | 12 months after the accounting period ends | Due even with a loss or nothing to pay |
The bank account, honestly
No step in the gov.uk registration process asks for a bank account, and the company exists without one. Opening one is a separate matter decided by the bank.
The statutory right to a basic bank account under the Payment Accounts Regulations 2015 belongs to consumers, which the Regulations define as natural persons acting outside their trade or business. A company has no equivalent entitlement. Whether a given bank or payment provider will onboard a company whose only director lives in Pakistan is its own commercial and anti-money laundering decision, and it varies by provider and changes over time. We do not publish a list, because nothing we could cite would keep it accurate.
Questions
The questionspeople ask
Can a Pakistani citizen register a company in the UK?
Yes. Directors do not have to live in the UK and there is no nationality requirement for directors or shareholders. The company needs a physical UK registered office, at least one director aged 16 or over who has verified their identity with Companies House, and at least one shareholder, who can be the same person.
How much does it cost to register a UK company?
The Companies House fee is £100 online or through software, £124 on paper, and £156 for same-day incorporation through software. These took effect on 1 February 2026. The previous online fee, from 1 May 2024, was £50, so older pages quoting that figure are out of date.
Can I use my Pakistan address as the registered office?
No. The registered office must be a physical address in the UK, in the same nation the company is registered in, and must be an appropriate address where post will reach someone acting for the company. Your Pakistan address can be your service address, and your home address is given to Companies House without being published.
Can I use a PO Box as the registered office?
No. Companies House no longer accepts a Royal Mail PO Box or a similar service from another provider. An accountant's or agent's address can be used with their permission if it meets the appropriate-address tests.
What is a SIC code and which one do I choose?
It identifies what the company does. Choose from the condensed SIC 2007 list Companies House publishes, since a code outside it may get the filing rejected. It can be changed later through the confirmation statement.
When do I have to register for Corporation Tax?
Online incorporation usually sets up Corporation Tax at the same time. Separately, section 55 of the Finance Act 2004 requires notice to HMRC within three months of the start of the first accounting period, which begins when the company starts to do business.
Is a UK company owned from Pakistan taxed in the UK?
Yes. Section 14 of the Corporation Tax Act 2009 makes every UK-incorporated company UK resident for Corporation Tax, and a UK resident company pays Corporation Tax on its worldwide profits, however it is managed.
Do I need a UK bank account to register the company?
No. Registration does not require one. Opening a business account afterwards is at the bank's discretion; the statutory right to a basic account applies only to consumers, not companies.
What does a UK company have to file every year?
A confirmation statement to Companies House at least every 12 months (£50 online), annual accounts to Companies House, and a Company Tax Return to HMRC with the tax paid 9 months and 1 day after the period ends. All three are due even if the company made a loss.
Also here
Relatedguides
Companies House ID verification
Who must verify, when your own deadline actually falls, the two routes open to someone in Pakistan, and what happens if you do not.
Owning a company abroad
What the State Bank actually permits, the limits that come with it, and why the answer for a company is not the answer for an individual.
Declaring a foreign company
What section 116A requires of a Pakistani resident who owns a company abroad, the penalty that runs every year, and the point at which it stops being a filing question.
Money from abroad
The five million rupee ceiling most pages omit, why a shield against questions is not an exemption from tax, and what the bank certificate is for.
Forming a UK company from Pakistan?
We handle incorporation, the registered office requirements, identity verification and Corporation Tax registration, and then keep the confirmation statement, accounts and CT600 on a written calendar.