Every company at some stage of its existence must appoint a director and if it chooses, a company secretary. The Companies Act states that a company must have at least one of director any one time.
In referring to a director or secretary, the definition includes persons, companies and nominees who may hold that position.
Appointing company directors or secretaries (company officers) is a relatively simple task of filling in the relevant boxes with the appropriate information on a Form AP01 or AP02 depending on whether the appointee is a natural person or a corporate entity (prior to 1 October 2009 all appointments were covered by Form 288a).
The form is sent to Companies House who will verify all information presented to it on the form. Any incomplete or incorrect forms will be returned to the sender for proper completion.
Appointing a company director or secretary can occur in two ways:
- Electronic appointment (online Form AP01 AP02) using online signatures
- Paper Form AP01 or AP02 (formerly Form 288a)
