Contributors
Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Act 2015 (Act)
The Act introduces some important changes to UK company law.
We have provided an 'at a glance' summary of the key changes and the proposed implementation dates below.
The summary has been updated to reflect the changes announced by Companies House to the proposed implementation timetable on 23 November 2015.
We will continue to monitor developments in this area as Companies House has warned that there may be further changes to the implementation timetable. Further updates will follow.
| Date | Change |
|---|---|
| 26 May 2015 |
Prohibition on issuing new bearer shares. Holders of bearer shares will have 9 months to surrender and exchange existing bearer shares for registered shares Application of directors' general duties to shadow directors (unless not capable of applying) |
| 10 October 2015 |
Accelerated strike off process Suppression of the day of a directors' date of birth from the public register of directors Changes to the consent to act process for new directors and secretaries |
| 26 February 2016 | End of 9 month period for holders of bearer shares to surrender and exchange existing bearer shares |
| April 2016 |
Requirement for companies and LLPs to maintain a PSC Register New process to challenge an inaccurate registered office address New provisions relating to director disputes |
| June 2016 |
Changes to the statement of capital Requirement to file an annual return abolished and replaced by annual confirmation detailing only any changes since the last confirmation statement ("check and confirm") Obligation to file the PSC Register at Companies House. Updates to be made via "check and confirm" Option for private companies (with shareholder approval) to keep information on the public register rather than keeping their own statutory registers |
| TBC | Prohibition on corporate directors (subject to exceptions and a transitional period for existing corporate directors) |
