timing and your experience setting up limited co?

MoneySavingMission

Asking for experiences.
How long does it take to set up a ltd company and associated business banking account?
It looks quick to set up on the gov website but is there a certain amount of time it needs to be established before it becomes operational?

Pennywise

You get the company registration usually same day. Opening a bank account depends on the bank - anywhere between 1-4 weeks typically. Usually quicker if you can attend the bank in person with your ID documents etc.

MoneySavingMission

what ID is usually required? is it extensive paperwork? I know it will vary per bank but it will just be high st bank.

happyandcontented

Our accountant advised us to use a Cashplus account as it is much quicker. From memory, it was up and running within a few days. They organised it all for us and now it is all online banking which is quick and convenient.

Pugsley_03

Having set up hundreds of companies in the past I can tell you it takes no more than an hour provided the accountant has all the personal information they need on the individuals who will be appointed as directors and shareholders.

You can do it yourself on companies house website if you want, it really isn't difficult if you read through the pages. Just be careful with the share capital pages because this is how much the shareholders have to put into the business to buy the shares...common practice is 100 shares of £1 each for a small ltd company.

On setting up a bank account, it can vary greatly depending on banks, your personal circumstances and whether you are asking for any facilities at the same time (bank overdrafts/credit cards etc).

Best advice I can give you is find a good accountant with reasonable rates. Watch out for cowboys but you can find experienced, but relatively cheap, accountants if you look hard enough.

MoneySavingMission

Pugsley_03 wrote: »

You can do it yourself on companies house website if you want, it really isn't difficult if you read through the pages. Just be careful with the share capital pages because this is how much the shareholders have to put into the business to buy the shares...common practice is 100 shares of £1 each for a small ltd company.

thanks. can you give me some more info on this structure? There will be no other directors etc just me as director.

uknick

What sort of extra information are you looking for regarding the share structure?

Other than, you give the company £100 in exchange for 100 shares. The shares are usually ordinary with full dividend/voting rights. This means as you're the only share holder you a) get all the dividends declared and b) have complete control over the company.

In you don't want to pay cash into the company bank account for the shares, it can be shown as an amount owed by you to your company in your opening balance sheet.

Newuser1987

Mine took a week to register! I was using the word Architects in my name so first needed proof from the Architects Registration Board that they are happy for me to use this word in my name. Then Companies House took 5 days to register the company.

I went into the bank the next day to open an account and they couldn't do it yet because they couldn't get an experian report as businesses do not always show up straight away. So that added another 48hrs.