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Miscellaneous Company typesIndustrial and Provident Societies (IP)
An industrial and provident society is an organisation that conducts an industry, business or trade, either as a co-operative or for the benefit of the community, and is registered under the Industrial and Provident Societies Act 1965.
These organisations do not register documents at Companies House. They are registered with the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and regulated by this body. The Companies Act 2006 requires the name of an industrial and provident society to be included on the registrar of companies’ index of company names. An IP may convert to a company registered under the Companies Act 2006.
For more information on IP’s, how to register and searching for registered IP’s please visit the FCA website. Converting from an Industrial and Provident Society to a Company
The society must agree to the conversion by passing a special resolution.
To convert to a registered company you will need to file the standard incorporation documents. To ensure the application is processed correctly you should include a letter or statement confirming that the application is being made by an industrial and provident society intending to convert to a company; and also that it should not be registered by Companies House until a date has been agreed with FCA. The FCA will send us copies of the relevant special resolution and forms B and/or Z, on receipt of which we will process the conversion and register the new company.
Conversion can take anything from a few days to a couple of months depending on the circumstances. If the application is incomplete or the documents are incorrect it can delay the process and in some cases the FCA may need 15 days to examine an application before registration can proceed.
Visit the FCA website which contains comprehensive information on converting an IP to a company. Assurance Companies (AC)
Under Section 3 of the Insurance Act 1936, an “assurance business” is defined as any of the following classes of business:-
The requirement to add the names of AC companies to the index of company names ceased in 2003. All assurance/insurance companies are regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA). To obtain further information about registering an assurance/insurance company please contact the FCA using the following link.
All AC records on the Companies House register are historic. Following a change in the law in 2003 Companies House no longer accepts returns for assurance/insurance companies; however, there are still AC records on the register from previously registered assurance/insurance companies. Visit the FCA website to search for assurance/insurance companies registered since 2003 and also for those registered before this date that may have changed their name.
Each assurance/insurance company was assigned an ‘AC’ number to distinguish it from a limited company; the AC number was different to the company number. This meant that an assurance/insurance company, that was also a limited company, had two separate entries and two separate numbers on the Companies House register.
Although the records held by Companies House are historic, the AC name prevents any company from being incorporated or a company from changing its name to one which is the ‘same as’ an AC name. This applies even if the AC no longer exists or it has changed its name. This is because the AC name is included on the Index of Company Names and is therefore subject to the Company and Business Names (Miscellaneous Provisions) Regulations 2009. For further information see chapter 6 of the Incorporation and Names Guidance – GP01 on the Companies House website. Unregistered Companies (ZC)
Unregistered companies include:
They appear on the Index of Company Names and are identified by a ‘ZC’ reference number.
ZC companies need only file documents at Companies House as required by the Unregistered Companies Regulations 2009. The list below is taken from these regulations:
Section 1043 of the Companies Act 2006 applies provisions of the Companies Act to certain unregistered companies. Documents filed by ZC companies are registered at Companies House and included on the public record. .
Yes. ZC companies may choose to register as a company under section 1040 of the Companies Act 2006. These companies would then be registered with a new Companies Act number and the ZC company record would be marked as closed/converted and appropriately annotated for the benefit of the searcher. Royal Charter Companies
Royal Charters date back to the thirteenth century. They are granted by the sovereign upon the advice of the Privy Council. New charters are normally reserved for bodies that work in the public interest (such as professional institutions and charities) and which can demonstrate pre-eminence, stability and permanence in their particular field. Most are comparable to companies limited by guarantee rather than those limited by shares.
If there is no economic activity within the company no documents are required to be filed at Companies House and anyone with a query should contact the royal charter company directly. The filing requirements for royal charter companies are set out in the Companies (Companies Authorised to Register) Regulations 2009. With regard to those that do not choose to register, some but not all are subject to the Unregistered Companies Regulations 2009. These regulations require them to file certain documents at Companies House. Such companies include those that:
For Royal Charters with an RC prefix, only the name is registered at Companies House as these do not have economic activity and therefore are not required to file documents at Companies House. Visit the Privy Council Office website for further information about Royal Charters. For Royal Charters with a ZC prefix any documents that have been filed at Companies House will be available on the public record. Investment Company with Variable Capital (ICVC)
An investment company with variable capital is a collective investment scheme within the meaning of section 75 of the Financial Services Act 1986, the object of which is investment in a limited class of investment. It is also classed as an open ended investment company within the meaning of Section 75 of that Act.
No documents are required to be filed at Companies House. Only the ICVC name is registered at Companies House on notification from the FCA. Visit the FCA website for further information on registering an ICVC.
All information regarding ICVC’s is held by the FCA. Please contact them direct for information or visit the FCA Website. |
