Persons of Significant Control – changes to Companies House Reporting

Last year saw a raft of changes come into effect at Companies House. Amongst the measures introduced was the requirement for companies to maintain a register of Persons of Significant Control (PSCs).

New rules, which came into effect on 26 June 2017 mean that companies need to report all changes to their PSC information as they take place and will no longer be able to wait for their annual confirmation statement.

Companies have up to 14 days to update their PSC register and another 14 days to notify Companies House of the changes.

A Person of Significant Control is someone who meets one or more of the following conditions:

• Directly or indirectly owns more than 25 per cent of shares in the company (any class of share)
• Directly or indirectly holds more than 25 per cent of voting rights in the company
• Directly or indirectly has the right to appoint or remove the majority of the board of directors of the company
• Has the right to exercise, or actually exercises, significant influence or control over the company; and/or
• Has the right to exercise, or actually exercises significant influence or control over the activities of a trust or firm which is not a legal entity, but which would itself satisfy any of the first four conditions if it were an individual

Companies must have taken steps to identify PSCs, record their details, and update the register when circumstances change. Failure to do so can result in penalties.

Link: PSC requirements for companies and limited liability partnerships