New powers for Companies House based on the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 (ECCT Act) finally came into force last week.
The new measures allow Companies House to combat the criminal acts and money laundering being carried by criminals abusing the company registration system.
The powers include being able to query information and request supporting evidence, make stronger checks on company names, and tackle and remove factually inaccurate information.
It will no longer be possible for a company to use a PO Box as their registered office address, and Companies House now have the ability to share data with other government departments and law enforcement agencies.
The new measures are accompanied by new criminal offences and civil penalties to help with their enforcement.
It is hoped that the new measures will not cause too much additional hassle for genuine businesses.
The ECCT Act also introduces other measures, including identity verification and accounts reform, but these will not be introduced until a later date.
