UK Subsidiary Setup for Foreign Companies
Setting up a UK subsidiary for your overseas company, done properly.
A UK subsidiary is a separate UK limited company owned by your parent company. We incorporate it with your company as shareholder, verify your directors and PSCs, and keep it compliant afterwards, all handled by a named UK-based specialist.
- £600 all-inclusive - no hidden fees
- ID verification for directors and PSCs handled
- Reply within one UK working day
Start your enquiry
About 60 seconds. A UK-based specialist replies within one working day.
What do you need help with?
The problem
A corporate shareholder makes a UK company more complex to set up.
Many online formation forms are built for individual founders. When the shareholder is a foreign company, the details need more care, and mistakes on the public record are slow and costly to correct.
- -The parent company recorded wrongly, or the wrong people shown on the PSC register
- -Directors and individual PSCs not verified under ECCTA, stalling the incorporation
- -Official Companies House and HMRC post going to an address nobody in the group monitors
- -No statutory registers, no one tracking accounts and confirmation statement deadlines in the UK
- -A branch registered when a subsidiary was needed, or the reverse
The comparison
What a basic online formation usually leaves out.
Basic online formation
Keystone
Companies House fee
Basic formation: Charged extra
Keystone: Included
VAT
Basic formation: Added at checkout
Keystone: Included
Identity verification fee
Basic formation: Charged extra
Keystone: Included and managed for you
PSC register for a foreign parent
Basic formation: Left to you
Keystone: Relevant legal entity or individuals recorded correctly
Corporate shareholder set up correctly
Basic formation: Not included
Keystone: Parent company details checked before filing
Statutory registers
Basic formation: Not included
Keystone: Set up from day one
Registered office
Basic formation: Charged extra
Keystone: Great Portland Street, W1 - £50/month
Someone UK-based to call
Basic formation: None
Keystone: A named UK qualified lawyer
Corrections when it goes wrong
Basic formation: You pay to fix it
Keystone: Done right first time - and fixed if not
What's included
Everything your UK subsidiary needs to start properly.
One fixed fee covers the incorporation of your UK subsidiary with your parent company as shareholder, reviewed and filed by a UK-based governance specialist.
Structure review before filing - parent company details, share capital, directors and PSCs confirmed for your group
Identity verification handled - Companies House verification for directors and individual PSCs, wherever they live
PSC filings handled - the parent recorded as a relevant legal entity, or the individuals behind it, as the rules require
All fees included - Companies House fees, VAT and identity verification fees in one price
Statutory registers set up - registers of members, directors and PSCs created from day one
Complete digital document pack - certificate, articles, registers and guidance on first filings for your group
One fixed fee. One UK qualified lawyer. No surprises later.
How it works
Three steps, entirely remote.
1
Tell us about your group
A short call or written brief covering the parent company, the directors you will appoint and what the UK subsidiary will do. We confirm the parent documents we need.
2
We verify and prepare
Directors and individual PSCs verify their identity online, and we prepare the incorporation with your parent company as shareholder and the PSC details filed correctly.
3
Your UK subsidiary is incorporated
We file with Companies House and deliver your document pack. Timing depends on verification, parent documents and Companies House, so we cannot guarantee a date. Ongoing company secretarial support is available afterwards.
Pricing
Transparent, all-inclusive pricing.
The incorporation fee includes Companies House fees, VAT and identity verification fees. No hidden charges.
This service
Company Incorporation
UK subsidiary incorporation with a corporate shareholder, handled by a UK qualified lawyer.
£600 one-off
Set up my UK subsidiaryRegistered Office Address
Great Portland Street, London W1W or Charlotte Street, Edinburgh EH2 - with secure mail handling
£50/month
Registered Office + Company Secretarial Support
The extra £20 buys the ongoing discipline: confirmation statements prepared and filed, statutory registers maintained, and compliance deadlines watched for you
£70/month
Most foreign parent companies add the registered office with company secretarial support, so official post and UK filing deadlines are handled for them.
Serving parent companies in
Verification, parent company documents and filings are all handled remotely - your directors do not need to travel to the UK.
Who you'll work with
A qualified specialist, not a ticket queue.
A qualified UK-based company secretarial specialist
Your enquiry is answered by the person who does the work - not a call centre and not an offshore processing team.
Filings are prepared, checked and submitted in the UK, and you keep the same point of contact afterwards. Read our guides: setting up a UK subsidiary, UK branch vs subsidiary, UK subsidiary audit exemption and registering an overseas company in the UK.
Questions
Setting up a UK subsidiary
Can a foreign company own 100% of a UK company?
Yes. A company from any country can be the only shareholder of a UK private limited company. The subsidiary still needs at least one director who is a real person, and a UK registered office address - we provide one at 167-169 Great Portland Street, London W1W 5PF.
Who needs to verify their identity?
Under ECCTA (the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act), every new director and every individual PSC (person with significant control) must verify their identity before incorporation. A parent company recorded as a relevant legal entity does not verify as a person, but the individuals involved may. We manage this as part of your incorporation.
Does a UK subsidiary need a UK resident director?
No. Directors can live anywhere. Where the board meets and makes decisions can affect where the company is tax resident, so speak to a tax adviser about your group.
Should we set up a subsidiary or a UK branch?
It depends on liability, tax and how you will trade. A subsidiary is a separate company with limited liability; a branch is registered as an overseas company. Our UK branch vs subsidiary guide compares them.
What does the £600 include?
The Companies House fee, VAT, ID verification, a structure review, PSC filings, statutory registers and a digital document pack. Registered office is £50/month, or £70/month with company secretarial support.
Can the subsidiary avoid an audit?
Possibly. Small company exemption depends on group size, and the s479A parent guarantee route is usually not open to non-UK parents. See our UK subsidiary audit exemption guide and take accounting advice.
Still have a question? Ask it in your enquiry - we answer it before you commit to anything.
Still have a question? Ask it directly - a specialist replies within one UK working day.
Ready to set up your UK subsidiary?
Tell us about your parent company and a UK-based specialist will come back to you within one working day, wherever in the world you are.
1. We reply within one UK working day
2. A short call or written questions, at a time that suits your time zone
3. A fixed-price confirmation before any work starts
Credentials and safeguards
- Companies House authorised agent
- AML supervised
- Professional indemnity insurance
- ICO registered
- Professional body member
Related services
Often needed alongside this.
Registered Office London
A W1 London address - or Charlotte Street, Edinburgh - on the public record, with official post received, scanned and forwarded wherever you are.
Read more →Director & Shareholder Changes
Appointments, resignations, share transfers and allotments filed correctly, with registers updated the same day.
Read more →For Expats & Overseas Directors
Everything a director outside the UK needs in one place - verification, address, filings and a named UK contact.
Read more →