Section 3 of AP04 asks for the corporate secretary’s principal office address, and it is the one entry on the form with a rule printed beside it. The address has to be a physical location where documents can be delivered. It cannot be a PO box number unless the box sits inside a full address, and it cannot be a DX number or an LP (Legal Post in Scotland) number. The page 3 checklist repeats the rule, and the form adds that the address will appear on the public record.
AP04 appoints a corporate body or firm as secretary of a company. For an individual, the form’s own margin sends you to AP03, “Appointment of secretary”. The paper form in use is version 8.0 (11/25), made under section 279G of the Companies Act 2006. It runs to three pages, the last holding a checklist and optional presenter details.
Which sections apply to your corporate secretary
Section 1 is the company’s number and name in full, and section 2 the date of appointment in day, month and year boxes. Section 3 takes the corporate body or firm’s name and address, then ends on a question: is the corporate secretary a limited company registered in the UK?
If it is, you complete section 4, which asks for one thing, the registration number. The margin points to gov.uk/get-information-about-a-company for finding it. If it is anything else, section 5 asks for the legal form of the body or firm and the law that governs it, then, where it appears on a register, where that register is (the state included) and its number there. The form insists on the pairing: name a register and you must give the number held in it.
Section by section
| Section | What goes in | Detail from the form |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Company number, company name in full | Must match the information on the public Register |
| 2 | Date of appointment | Required on the page 3 checklist |
| 3 | Corporate body or firm name, then building, street, post town, county or region, postcode, country | Physical location; no PO box (unless inside a full address), DX or LP number |
| 4 | Registration number | Only for a limited company registered in the UK |
| 5 | Legal form, governing law, register and number | For every other corporate body or firm |
| 6 | Tick box for consent to act | Checklist: complete either section 4 or 5, and tick this |
| 7 | Printed name | No signature needed |
Consent, and who authenticates
Section 6 is a single tick box worded as a statement by the company: the corporate body named in section 3 has consented to act as corporate secretary of the company named in section 1.
Section 7 wants a printed name. The form lists who may authenticate: a director, the secretary, a person authorised under section 270 or 274 of the Companies Act 2006, an administrator, administrative receiver, receiver, receiver manager, Charity Commission receiver and manager, CIC manager or judicial factor. Where a UK Societas is filing, “director” is deleted and replaced with the organ of the UKS that the signatory belongs to.
Filing within 14 days, online or on paper
GOV.UK’s guide to running a limited company says changes to company secretaries, appointing a new one included, must be reported to Companies House within 14 days. The page for AP04 puts the online service first and notes that paper forms sent by post take longer. A company in the protected online filing (PROOF) scheme is told not to use the paper form at all; AP04 is among the forms the scheme covers, and a paper copy is sent back to the registered office address.
A posted form goes to the address listed at gov.uk/companies-house/offices. Page 3 warns that forms completed incorrectly or with information missing may be returned, and asks you to confirm that the company name and number match the Register, the date of appointment is filled in, the new corporate secretary’s address is entered, section 4 or 5 is complete, the consent box in section 6 is ticked and the form is authenticated.
Official PDF: AP04 — Official PDF (assets.publishing.service.gov.uk)
Sources
- Companies House, AP04 Appointment of corporate secretary, version 8.0, 11/25 (assets.publishing.service.gov.uk)
- GOV.UK, Appoint a corporate secretary (AP04), last updated 18 November 2025 (gov.uk)
- GOV.UK, Running a limited company: company information you must report (gov.uk)
- Companies House, Protect your company from corporate identity theft (PROOF) (gov.uk)