How to Remove Directors’ Details on Companies House: Legal Guidelines 

In Short

• Companies House must publish certain director details for transparency, and this information is publicly accessible for long periods.

• Recent reforms allow directors to apply to remove limited types of personal information, but strict eligibility rules apply.

• Applications must follow Companies House guidance closely and may require evidence and a fee per document.

Tips for Businesses

If you are a director, check what personal information appears on the Companies House register and understand what cannot be removed. Review the eligibility rules carefully before applying, as they differ by document type. Complete applications accurately, include supporting evidence where required, and factor in fees and processing time to avoid delays or refusal.

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Table of Contents

• The Role of a Director
• Understanding Public Information Requirements
• Transparency Obligations
• Removing or Restricting Personal Information
• Applying to Remove or Restrict Personal Information
• Seeking Legal Advice to Support Your Business 
• Key Takeaways
• Frequently Asked Questions

Operating a UK limited company can offer your business significant commercial and legal advantages. Nonetheless, running a company also comes with various transparency obligations. Companies House is the official register for limited companies, and businesses must provide accurate information as part of their legal duties. 

Directors need to be aware of the information Companies House publishes, as various details about them are made available to the public. Companies House have released guidance on when and how an individual can have certain personal information removed. 

This article outlines the Companies House system, explains why some director details are public, and provides a summary of how directors can remove eligible personal information from the Companies House register.

UK Directors Duties

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The Role of a Director

A company director plays a key role within an organisation’s structure, managing issues such as: 

• approving key decisions; 
• preparing accounts; and 
• ensuring compliance with legal duties. 

Some directors adopt a hands-on operational role, while others provide strategic oversight, but all must fulfil important legal responsibilities.

Understanding Public Information Requirements

Companies House collects and publishes a wide range of company information, including:

• incorporation details; 
• registered office addresses; 
• confirmation statements; 
• shareholder and PSC information; and 
• various other information. 

Any individual accepting directorship must understand that certain personal information will be made available on the public register. This is because Companies House is legally required to disclose specific information. These details remain part of the company’s record as long as it remains active, and even after dissolution, some records stay publicly accessible for an extended period. The public can freely access company information, and because Companies House operates under open data principles, it cannot control how third parties: 

• access; 
• use; or 
• republish this information. 

Details may appear in search engines and commercial databases long after a director has left their position or attempted to update or remove specific information.

Transparency Obligations

The UK GDPR is a legal framework that governs how organisations collect, use, and store personal data, and it gives individuals a range of rights over how their information is handled. However, Companies House guidance explains that it is exempt from certain requirements because it is obliged to publish specified information.

This is important for directors to understand, particularly given the vast range of data protection law rules that ordinarily apply to most organisations when processing personal information.

Removing or Restricting Personal Information

Despite Companies House’s unique role, legislative reforms have widened the circumstances in which individuals can apply to have certain information removed from the public register. The rules now cover a broader range of personal details that may be eligible for suppression. These changes are intended to reduce risks such as identity theft, fraud, and other harms linked to the availability of personal information.

Companies House permits applications to remove various items of personal data, including:

• home addresses; 
• signatures; 
• business occupation; and 
• part of an individual’s date of birth in certain circumstances. 

However, specific eligibility criteria apply depending on what information is being removed, and different rules apply to different types of applications. 

The rules are strict and require careful attention. For example:

• A home address can only be removed if it appears as a correspondence address or as a company’s registered office. Additional conditions apply depending on which was used. 
• The day of a date of birth can only be removed where it appears on a document filed before 10 October 2015. 
• Occupation can only be removed if it was required to be provided. 
• Signatures cannot be removed from any document delivered under mortgage provisions, including charges, deeds or debentures. 

Applying to Remove or Restrict Personal Information

Applications must clearly identify each document containing the information to be removed. 

Companies House will assess the data removal application and may ask for further information or evidence if needed. Applicants will receive written confirmation of the decision. If the application is approved, Companies House will remove the relevant information from the public documents. In some cases, they may show limited or partial address details instead. If an application is refused, an appeal is only available in limited circumstances and for certain types of applications.

Seeking Legal Advice to Support Your Business 

Directors need to understand their legal duties and exactly what information they must give to Companies House. This includes filing requirements and the transparency rules that decide what appears on the public register. They should also be aware that there are only limited situations where personal information can be removed or restricted.

Any application to remove personal details must be: 

• completed carefully; 
• include any required evidence; and 
• follow Companies House processes to avoid delays or refusal. 

A corporate solicitor can help directors understand their disclosure obligations, guide new directors on what information will be made public, and assist with applications to remove eligible personal details.

Key Takeaways

It is important for directors to understand that Companies House publishes public information for transparency purposes. Directors may be eligible to apply for the removal of personal information appearing in the public record. If a director requires support with this process (or an understanding of other routes to removing information where applicable), they can seek legal advice from a corporate solicitor to guide them.

This article focuses solely on the steps and eligibility requirements set out in Companies House’s guidance on removing personal information from the public register. 

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Frequently Asked Questions