Explanatory note

(This Note is not part of the Regulations)

These Regulations amend the Companies (Fees) Regulations 1991, as amended by the Companies (Fees) (Amendment) Regulations 1992, the Companies (Fees) (Amendment) Regulations 1994 and the Companies (Fees) (Amendment) Regulations 1995, which require the payment of fees in respect of functions performed by the registrar of companies under the Companies Act 1985.

Regulation 3 amends these Regulations by:

(1)

reducing the fees applicable in respect of:

(a)

the registration of an annual return, and the registration of copy accounts delivered by an oversea company otherwise than at the time of a branch registration,

(b)

the registration of a change of name by a company,

(c)

the delivery by post pursuant to any form of request other than one on-line, of a basic set of microfiche copies,

(d)

the delivery by post pursuant to any form of request other than one on-line, of the excluded documents of a branch or undertaking recorded and kept by the registrar in the form of a microfiche copy (regulation 3(a));

(2)

increasing the fees applicable in respect of the following matters from £3.00 to £3.50:

(a)

the inspection of a basic set of microfiche copies,

(b)

the inspection of the excluded documents of a branch or undertaking recorded and kept by the registrar of companies in the form of a microfiche copy,

(c)

the inspection of a list of members of a company consisting of more than 10 pages, other than an inspection requested on the same occasion as a request to inspect the basic set of microfiche copies relating to that company,

(d)

the delivery, at an office of the registrar, of a basic set of microfiche copies,

(e)

the delivery, at an office of the registrar, of microfiche copies of the excluded documents of a branch or undertaking recorded and kept by the registrar in the form of a microfiche copy (regulation 3(a));

(3)

increasing the fees applicable in respect of certified copies of, or extracts from, any record and, when the record is a list of members consisting of more than 10 pages, in respect of the first ten pages, from £12.00 to £15.00 (regulation 3(a));

(4)

increasing the fees applicable in respect of the supply of a first certificate of incorporation on any occasion from £12.00 to £15.00 and for each additional certificate supplied on the same occasion from £9.50 to £10.00 (regulation 3(a));

(5)

abolishing the fee applicable in respect of the inspection of entries in the register relating to one company (regulation 3(b));

(6)

prescribing a new fee of £10.00 in relation to the registration of a change of the corporate name of an oversea company (regulation 3(c));

(7)

replacing entry 11 with a new provision requiring the payment of fees by reference only to whether the relevant copies (lists of members consisting of more than 10 pages) were delivered by post or at an office of the registrar. In the first case a fee of £5.00 is charged, in the latter a fixed fee of £3.50 is payable in place of a fee of £3.00 for the first five sheets of microfiche and 10p for each subsequent sheet (regulation 3(d));

(8)

replacing entry 12 with a new entry under which a new fee is charged in relation to the delivery of paper copies of records, other than a list of members, relating to a company at an office of the registrar where those records are requested otherwise than on the occasion of the inspection of the records of that company or of a request for a basic set of microfiche copies relating to that company. The new fee is £3.50 plus £1 for each document of these records supplied. The fee for copies requested on the specified occasions remains the same (regulation 3(e));

(9)

replacing entry 13 with a new entry under which new fees are charged, in respect of paper copies of a company’s records, kept by the registrar in the form of a microfiche copy, other than a list of members, by reference to the number of documents requested rather than the mode of request. The fee is £6.00 in respect of one document and £2.50 in respect of each further document requested on the same occasion (regulation 3(f));

(10)

replacing entries 16, 16A and 16B by a new entry 16 under which new fees are charged in respect of paper copies of particulars registered in respect of a branch or undertaking by reference to the means of delivery. The new fee is 10p per screen of information on a computer terminal where the copies are delivered at an office of the registrar or £1 per screen where delivered by post (regulation 3(g)).

Regulation 4 provides for the new fees (with the exception of the fees for the registration of an annual return) to come into effect on 1st October 1996. In relation to annual returns the new fee is applied to all annual returns which are made up to a date not later than a return date (ascertained for each company in accordance with section 363(1) of the Companies Act 1985) on or after 1st October 1996 and which are delivered on or after 20th September 1996.