UK Certificate of Good Standing

It is the everyday name banks, overseas counsel and foreign registries use for a Companies House company certificate that includes a summary statement (previously called the statement of good standing) where the company is eligible. The summary confirms continuous unbroken existence since incorporation and that no action is currently being taken to strike the company off. Companies House does not sell a product literally titled “Certificate of Good Standing”; it sells a company certificate with certified facts. Confirm product wording on GOV.UK.

Yes in substance. The document you receive is an official Companies House company certificate. The “good standing” label refers to requesting the summary statement among the optional certified facts. Without current filings, Companies House may still issue a certificate of fact but refuse the summary statement — which is what many banks mean by “good standing”.

As of the week of publish (16 September 2026), Companies House charges £22 for a standard company certificate and £65 for express (order before 11am for same working-day dispatch). UKCOGS charges £79 Standard and £129 Express, both ex VAT; those prices include the official CH fee and our ordering, checking and tracked-delivery handling. Always reconfirm official fees on GOV.UK before a hard deadline.

Standard: Companies House aims to send within about 10 working days by Second Class post; once we receive it we scan and send on by tracked post or courier — typically a further 1–3 working days in the UK. Express: order must reach Companies House before 11am for same working-day dispatch (First Class); we then send on the same or next working day after receipt. Courier to a foreign lawyer adds transit time. Apostille is separate and quote-only.

Core company facts certified by Companies House, plus any optional facts you request: directors, secretaries, registered office, objects, and the summary statement where eligible. It does not include shareholders, Persons with Significant Control (PSC), shareholdings or a statement of capital — those options closed in 2016. See GOV.UK “Order certified copies and certificates from Companies House”.

Companies House stopped offering certificates that include PSC, shareholders, shareholdings or statement of capital. If a bank or counsel asks for ownership detail, that comes from a different Companies House document or filing extract — not from this certificate. Tell us early if the recipient list mentions PSC or share capital so we can quote the right certified copies.

Companies House will only issue the summary statement if filings are up to date. Overdue accounts or an overdue confirmation statement typically mean you get a certificate of fact without the summary — which many banks reject. Use the free <a href="/tools/filings-check/">filings checker</a> or the live register before you pay. We can pause and offer a filings check rather than order a certificate that will disappoint the recipient.

Companies House does not print a legal expiry date. Recipients commonly treat certificates as usable for about 30–90 days from issue, or insist on an issue date after a named filing. That is an operational rule of the bank or registry, not UK statute. Confirm the written window with the recipient and use our free document-freshness helper before you reorder.

Yes. Accountants, formation agents, solicitors and authorised representatives routinely order for clients. You must be authorised to order documents for the company. We need the company name, company number, delivery address and confirmation that you have authority. We order to our address so we can scan and forward — not to the company’s registered office by default.

When the receiving organisation outside the UK requires the Companies House signature to be legalised. Hague Convention countries usually want an FCDO apostille. Official FCDO fees (confirm on GOV.UK): paper £45 plus courier/postage; e-Apostille £35. Apostille remains quote-only with UKCOGS until we can fulfil via a contracted partner — we will not take that money until we can deliver.

No. An SRA certificate of good standing is a regulatory document for solicitors issued by the Solicitors Regulation Authority. A BSB certificate covers barristers. This page is only for the Companies House company certificate used for UK limited companies and similar. If you need an SRA or BSB certificate, contact those regulators directly — we do not supply them.

No. UKCOGS is operated by Pasecom Group Ltd (company number 17139327), a private document agent. We order official documents from Companies House and arrange delivery. We do not create, amend or certify the register. Official fees belong to government and should be confirmed on GOV.UK.