FAQ: Companies House certificates, fees and apostilles

No. UKCOGS is a private document agent operated by Pasecom Group Ltd (company number 17139327). Companies House issues company certificates and certified copies; the FCDO Legalisation Office issues apostilles. We order the official documents for you, check them and arrange tracked delivery. We do not create, amend or certify the register, and we do not claim FCDO-listed or partner status.

Buy-now: Certificate of Good Standing Standard £79 or Express £129, certified Certificate of Incorporation £49, certified articles £49, the company documents pack £249–£299 and a manual filings check £15 (all ex VAT). Quote-only: paper apostille, e-Apostille, embassy legalisation, translations and same-day or next-day FCDO work. Use the quote form for those.

Choose the product on the order page and give the company name, Companies House number, your email and the delivery address. We reply by email to confirm the order and send payment details. Card checkout is not live on the site yet, so nothing is charged when you submit the form.

Yes. Third parties order for clients all the time; you do not need the company authentication code to order certificates or certified copies. You must be authorised to order for the company. If you place several orders a month, see accountants and agents.

You can order direct from Companies House and many people do. Buyers use us when they want the wording matched to the bank or registry checklist, a filings sense-check before the fee is spent, the paper received and scanned at a UK address, tracked onward delivery to a lawyer abroad, and one point of contact if an apostille is needed later. Compare both routes on the cost estimator.

Companies House aims to send standard orders within 10 working days by Royal Mail Second Class. When the paper reaches us we scan it and send it on by tracked post or courier, typically within 1–3 working days. Allow roughly two to three working weeks door to door in the UK, and longer to an address abroad.

No. Express means Companies House dispatches the same working day if the order is placed before 11am, by First Class post. It does not mean the certificate arrives that day, and it does not speed up FCDO, courier or overseas acceptance. Orders after 11am are sent the next working day.

Yes. Email us your UKC reference or use the track page, and we reply from pete@pasecom.co.uk with the current stage: ordered, awaiting Companies House, received and scanned, or dispatched with tracking.

Companies House asks for missing orders to be reported within 28 days of the order being placed; after that a new order is needed. Because we order to our own address and chase on your behalf, tell us as soon as an expected delivery is late.

Only if the person abroad asks for the document to be legalised. Hague Convention countries generally accept an FCDO apostille; some non-Hague countries, such as the UAE, also need an embassy stage. Confirm the exact requirement with the recipient. See apostille and legalisation and the country guides.

GOV.UK says the e-Apostille service is for PDFs electronically signed by a UK notary or solicitor, so a paper certificate goes through the paper apostille route unless a notary or solicitor prepares a signed digital version. Many overseas banks still ask for paper. Ask the recipient which they accept before choosing.

GOV.UK currently states: standard paper apostille usually up to 25 working days plus courier or postage; e-Apostille up to 2 working days; Next-Day and Restricted Urgent are for registered businesses only. Signature checks can add time. We do not guarantee same-day legalisation.

We only take legalisation money once we have confirmed we can fulfil the specific job. Order the Companies House document buy-now, then send the destination and checklist on the quote form. Note that the FCDO does not refund its fee if a document cannot be legalised, which is why we check first.