How to Start a Small Business in the UK in 2026?: Step-by-Step Guide

Starting a small business in the UK in 2026 involves more than choosing a name and registering with HMRC or Companies House.

The basic process is to test the business idea, choose the right legal structure, make sure you are allowed to run the business, complete the necessary registrations, organise tax and accounting, check licences and insurance, and only then start trading at scale.

For somebody starting from scratch, the order should normally look like this:

1. Test whether customers will actually pay for the product or service.
2. Decide between operating as a sole trader, limited company or partnership.
3. Check employment-contract, immigration and benefit implications.
4. Choose a business name and check it is legally usable.
5. Register with HMRC or Companies House as appropriate.
6. Complete Companies House identity verification if forming a company.
7. Check licences, insurance and data-protection requirements.
8. Open suitable banking and accounting systems.
9. Understand VAT, Self Assessment, Corporation Tax and Making Tax Digital.
10. Launch, keep records and monitor cash flow.

Several rules changed significantly during 2025 and 2026, meaning an older article on how to start a small business may now give incomplete advice.

What Has Changed for New Businesses in 2026?

Some of the most important points for somebody starting a UK business today are:

Companies House increased its online incorporation charge to £100 and its digital confirmation statement charge to £50 from 1 February 2026. Identity verification is also now part of the legal framework for directors and people with significant control.

These are not minor administrative details. They affect the cost and practical steps involved in setting up a business today.

How Much Does It Cost to Start a Small Business in the UK?

There is no single startup cost because a freelance consultant can begin with relatively little equipment while a restaurant, construction company or retailer may require premises, stock, licences, vehicles and employees.

However, several 2026 costs can be identified accurately.

The fixed government charges above are current figures, while insurance, banking, accounting and registered-office costs are commercial prices rather than statutory amounts. Quoting a universal “typical” insurance or accountant cost can therefore be misleading unless the figure is refreshed from current provider quotes immediately before publication.

For somebody forming a straightforward limited company, Companies House filing charges alone can therefore amount to at least £150 across the initial £100 incorporation and the first £50 digital confirmation statement fee, before accounting, banking, insurance or regulatory costs.

1. Decide Whether to Be a Sole Trader or Limited Company

This is one of the first major decisions when learning how to start a small business.

A sole trader and a limited company are not simply two registration methods. They create different legal, tax and administrative arrangements.

Is There a Profit Level Where a Limited Company Becomes Cheaper?

There is no reliable universal figure at which every sole trader should become a limited company.

Older articles sometimes say that a company automatically becomes more tax-efficient once profit reaches £30,000, £40,000 or £50,000. That is too simplistic for 2026.

A sole trader broadly needs to compare:

Business profit − Income Tax − self-employed National Insurance

A company owner potentially needs to compare:

Company profit − salary costs − employer National Insurance − Corporation Tax − personal tax on dividends or salary − additional accountancy and compliance costs

For 2026, the small-profits Corporation Tax rate is 19% for qualifying profits of £50,000 or less, the main rate is 25% above £250,000, and Marginal Relief applies between those levels. Those limits can also be reduced where associated companies or short accounting periods are involved.

Dividend taxation also changed in April 2026. Above the £500 Dividend Allowance, the ordinary dividend rate is 10.75%, the upper rate is 35.75% and the additional rate remains 39.35%.

That makes old “go limited at £X profit” calculations particularly unreliable.

A limited company may still be attractive because of limited liability, retained profits, investment plans, ownership structure or commercial requirements. Tax should be calculated alongside those factors rather than treated as the only reason to incorporate.

Anyone moving beyond the planning stage can also look at the practical steps involved in turning a business plan into execution.

2. Check Whether You Can Legally Start the Business

Most UK residents are free to run a business, but three areas deserve checking before money is committed.

Starting a Business While Employed

Being employed does not automatically prevent somebody from becoming self-employed or starting a company.

However, the employment contract should be checked for terms covering:

• outside employment;
• conflicts of interest;
• confidentiality;
• intellectual property;
• use of employer equipment;
• approaching existing clients;
• competition with the employer.

Some contracts contain exclusivity clauses or restrictive covenants. The enforceability depends on the wording and circumstances, and certain exclusivity clauses are prohibited for zero-hours and sufficiently low-paid workers.

Starting a competing company using an employer’s confidential information is very different from running an unrelated weekend business.

What About the £1,000 Trading Allowance?

An individual can have up to £1,000 a year of qualifying gross trading income covered by the trading allowance.

Where relevant gross trading income exceeds £1,000, registration for Self Assessment may be required, normally by 5 October following the tax year concerned.

This £1,000 figure is not another Personal Allowance. Somebody with PAYE employment and business income should consider the two income sources together when working out their tax position.

There is more detail on how much can be earned before paying tax, including the Personal Allowance, self-employment and side-income rules.

Can Visa Holders Start a Business?

Do not assume that every UK work visa allows unrestricted self-employment.

For example, a Skilled Worker visa can permit up to 20 hours a week of work in another job or the visa holder’s own business where the relevant supplementary-work conditions are satisfied. Business administration, including preparing invoices, counts towards those hours.

Other immigration routes have different rules. The Innovator Founder route, for example, is specifically designed around establishing and running an endorsed innovative business.

Anybody whose right to work depends on immigration permission should check the exact conditions attached to that permission before trading.

Starting a Business While Receiving Universal Credit

Self-employment can affect Universal Credit.

Claimants normally need to report their business income and expenses each monthly assessment period. Eligible claimants may receive a start-up period of up to 12 months, during which actual earnings are used rather than the Minimum Income Floor.

Company directors with significant control can also fall within Universal Credit’s self-employment reporting rules.

3. Choose and Check the Business Name

A good name should be commercially useful, but it must also survive legal and practical checks.

Before committing to signage, packaging or a domain:

1. Search the Companies House register for similar company names.
2. Search the UK trade mark database.
3. Check relevant domain names.
4. Check social-media handles.
5. Search the name normally online for existing businesses.
6. Avoid names that could mislead customers or breach restricted-word rules.
7. Consider registering a trade mark where the brand is commercially important.

A sole trader may trade under their own name or another business name, but cannot use company-status wording such as “Limited” where it would falsely imply incorporation.

Do not assume Companies House accepting a company name means it is safe from a trade mark dispute. Company-name and trade-mark rules serve different purposes.

4. Register the Business Correctly

The process depends on the structure chosen.

Registering as a Sole Trader

A sole trader generally needs to register for Self Assessment when the HMRC reporting rules require it.

The £1,000 trading allowance is relevant here: gross qualifying trading income of £1,000 or less will often not need to be reported, although exceptions exist.

Keep records from the beginning rather than waiting until the first tax return is due.

Registering a Limited Company

A company is incorporated through Companies House.

As of 2026, online incorporation costs £100. A new company will also have ongoing obligations including accounts, Corporation Tax requirements and confirmation statements. The digital confirmation statement fee is currently £50 for the first statement in the applicable 12-month payment period.

Companies House Identity Verification Is Now a Mandatory Step

This is one of the biggest differences between starting a company in 2026 and following an older startup article.

Identity verification became a legal requirement from 18 November 2025.

A new director needs a Companies House personal code as part of incorporation or an appointment filing. Existing directors provide their codes with the company’s confirmation statement according to their applicable deadline. PSCs also have their own verification and personal-code requirements.

Verification can be completed directly using GOV.UK One Login or through an Authorised Corporate Service Provider, such as an appropriately authorised accountant or formation agent. Direct verification through GOV.UK One Login is free.

Continuing to act as a director after the applicable deadline without complying with verification requirements can constitute an offence.

A genuinely current 2026 business-startup checklist therefore needs to include identity verification rather than treating company formation as merely choosing a name, supplying an address and paying a filing fee.

5. Think About Privacy Before Using a Home Address

Running a business from home is common, but limited-company founders should understand what Companies House publishes.

A director supplies both:

• a service address; and
• a usual residential address.

The residential address is normally kept on a private register. However, the company’s registered office and the director’s service address are publicly searchable.

If a home address is used as either of those public addresses, it can therefore appear online.

Anyone concerned about privacy should decide on an appropriate alternative before incorporation rather than publishing the home address and trying to remove it later.

Registered-office services are available commercially, but the business must have permission to use the address and it must meet Companies House requirements.

6. Check Which Licences and Registrations Apply

“Check whether you need a licence” is technically correct but not very useful.

The actual requirement depends on what the business does and where it operates.

Food businesses in England, Wales and Northern Ireland generally need to register with the local authority at least 28 days before trading. Registration is free. Scotland has its own food-business guidance and local-authority process.

In England, a business transporting waste, dealing in waste or arranging waste transactions may need Environment Agency registration. Registration is usually free only where a business solely transports waste it produced itself; otherwise the current registration cost shown by GOV.UK is £191.02.

Street-trading and taxi/private-hire rules are another example of why local requirements matter. Trading in the street without a required licence can lead to penalties, while taxi and private-hire drivers, vehicles and operators can require separate licences.

For alcohol and certain entertainment or late-night activities in England and Wales, premises licensing can apply. Current application fees run from £100 to £1,905 depending on the property’s fee band and circumstances.

The practical rule is simple: check licences before taking deposits, signing a long lease or announcing an opening date.

7. Arrange the Right Business Insurance

Some insurance is optional. Some can effectively be required by clients or professional bodies. One type is particularly important when taking on employees.

Employers’ Liability Insurance

If a business becomes an employer, Employers’ Liability insurance is generally legally required, subject to limited exceptions.

The policy must normally provide cover of at least £5 million from an authorised insurer.

A business can be fined £2,500 for every day it is not properly insured.

Depending on the activity, a small business may also consider:

• public liability insurance;
• professional indemnity insurance;
• product liability cover;
• cyber insurance;
• buildings or contents insurance;
• stock cover;
• commercial vehicle insurance;
• legal-expenses cover.

The right combination depends on the risks created by the business rather than simply its size.

8. Understand Tax Before the First Sale

Tax planning should happen before money begins moving through the business.

Self Assessment for Sole Traders

A sole trader generally pays Income Tax based on taxable business profit together with other taxable income.

This means turnover is not the same as taxable profit.

Business owners who cross relevant reporting thresholds must also meet Self Assessment registration and filing requirements.

Making Tax Digital for Income Tax Is Now Live

Making Tax Digital for Income Tax is no longer simply a future policy.

The first mandatory stage began on 6 April 2026.

The current timetable is:

Qualifying income broadly means gross income from self-employment and property before expenses for the relevant test. Businesses within MTD need compatible software for digital records and quarterly updates to HMRC.

That makes software choice an increasingly important startup decision for sole traders expecting significant turnover.

When Must a Business Register for VAT?

The compulsory VAT registration threshold remains more than £90,000 of taxable turnover.

Businesses need to monitor taxable turnover on a rolling 12-month basis, rather than only looking at turnover in the accounting year.

The VAT deregistration threshold is currently £88,000.

Should a Small Business Register for VAT Voluntarily?

A business below £90,000 can choose to register voluntarily.

Whether that helps depends heavily on the customer base.

Voluntary VAT registration can be more attractive when:

• customers are mostly VAT-registered businesses;
• the business has substantial VAT-bearing costs;
• customers are comfortable with VAT invoices;
• registration helps with procurement requirements.

It can be less attractive when:

• customers are mainly consumers;
• competitors remain below the threshold;
• adding VAT would make the final price less competitive;
• administration outweighs the recoverable VAT.

For a B2B consultancy charging £1,000 plus VAT, a VAT-registered business customer may be able to recover that VAT.

For a consumer-facing service trying to keep a final price at £1,000, VAT can instead place pressure on the business’s margin or customer price.

Flat Rate Scheme or Normal VAT Accounting?

The VAT Flat Rate Scheme is another decision rather than an automatic saving.

A business can generally join if expected VAT-taxable turnover is £150,000 or less, subject to the detailed eligibility rules. The scheme uses a sector-based flat percentage instead of calculating VAT on most individual purchases in the normal way.

The standard method may be more suitable where a business has significant VAT-bearing expenditure.

The Flat Rate Scheme can be simpler for some businesses but should not be selected purely because it sounds easier.

9. Choose Cash Basis or Traditional Accounting

For eligible sole traders and partnerships, cash basis is now the standard accounting method.

Under cash basis, income is normally recorded when the money is received and expenses when they are paid.

Traditional accounting — also called accrual accounting — records income and costs according to when they are earned or incurred, even if payment has not yet moved.

A sole trader can choose traditional accounting instead.

It can make more sense where a business:

• carries significant stock;
• uses more complex financing;
• wants fuller management accounts;
• needs accounts prepared on an accrual basis for lenders or investors.

Limited companies cannot use the Self Assessment cash-basis system available to eligible sole traders and partnerships.

How Long Must Sole Traders Keep Records?

Self-employed business records normally need to be kept for at least five years after the 31 January submission deadline for the relevant tax year.

Starting with organised records is significantly easier than reconstructing sales, receipts and bank transactions several years later.

10. Separate Business and Personal Money

A dedicated business bank account can make bookkeeping, tax calculations and cash-flow monitoring considerably easier.

A limited company should be treated financially as a separate legal entity rather than using company money as if it were the director’s personal current account.

Even where a sole trader is not legally required to use a separate business bank account, separating transactions can simplify:

• bookkeeping;
• VAT records;
• expense claims;
• cash-flow forecasting;
• accountant handover;
• evidence if HMRC asks about transactions.

The business should also establish an accounting system before transaction volume becomes difficult to manage.

11. Work Out How Much Cash the Business Actually Needs

Startup funding should be calculated from expected cash flow rather than an attractive round number.

A simple funding calculation is:

One-off setup costs + stock/equipment + deposits + three to six months of operating costs + tax reserve + contingency − confirmed startup income

Possible funding sources include:

• personal savings;
• business loans;
• Start Up Loans;
• grants;
• asset finance;
• investment;
• crowdfunding;
• invoice finance once trading;
• supplier credit where available.

The government-backed Start Up Loan scheme currently offers eligible applicants between £500 and £25,000, at a fixed rate of 7.5% a year, repayable over one to five years. It is an unsecured personal loan for business purposes rather than borrowing by the company itself. Successful applicants can also receive up to 12 months of mentoring.

12. Know What the First Employee Really Costs in 2026

The employee’s advertised salary is not the complete employment cost.

From April 2026, the National Living Wage for somebody aged 21 or above is £12.71 an hour. The 18–20 rate is £10.85 and the under-18/apprentice rate is £8 where the respective rules apply.

For most ordinary employees, employer National Insurance is 15% above the £5,000 annual Secondary Threshold in 2026/27. Eligible businesses may offset some employer NIC through the £10,500 Employment Allowance.

Example: Full-Time Employee Aged 21+

Suppose an employee works 37.5 paid hours a week for 52 weeks at £12.71 an hour.

Annual gross pay

£12.71 × 37.5 × 52 = £24,784.50

Ignoring special NIC categories, employer NIC before any Employment Allowance would be approximately:

£24,784.50 − £5,000 = £19,784.50

£19,784.50 × 15% = £2,967.68

For a qualifying employee in a standard automatic-enrolment pension arrangement, the minimum employer pension contribution is normally 3% of qualifying earnings. Qualifying earnings commonly run from £6,240 to £50,270.

Approximate minimum employer pension in this example:

£24,784.50 − £6,240 = £18,544.50

£18,544.50 × 3% = £556.34

That gives an indicative payroll cost of approximately:

That is before recruitment, training, equipment, Employers’ Liability insurance and other employment costs.

It also assumes a normal employee NIC category and does not take Employment Allowance into account. Eligible employers could see a different effective NIC cost.

Sick Pay Rules Also Changed in 2026

Since 6 April 2026, eligible employees can receive Statutory Sick Pay from the first full day of sickness absence rather than waiting until day four.

SSP is £123.25 per week in 2026/27 or 80% of average weekly earnings, whichever is lower.

One point worth correcting from older commentary on the Employment Rights Act 2025: there is not a new general day-one right to ordinary unfair-dismissal protection in 2026.

The usual qualifying period remains two years during 2026. From 1 January 2027, it reduces to six months for most employees. Existing protections relating to discrimination and automatically unfair reasons can apply without that ordinary qualifying period.

13. Deal With Data Protection Properly

Any small business collecting names, email addresses, phone numbers, addresses, employee records or customer information needs to consider UK data-protection requirements.

Practical steps can include:

• identifying what personal information is collected;
• establishing a lawful reason for using it;
• publishing an appropriate privacy notice;
• limiting staff access;
• securing devices and accounts;
• having a procedure for data requests;
• deciding how long information should be retained;
• planning what to do after a data breach.

Does a Small Business Have to Pay the ICO?

Businesses, organisations and sole traders processing personal information must pay the Information Commissioner’s Office data-protection fee unless an exemption applies.

The current annual fee is £52 or £78 for most organisations, with the largest tier reaching £3,763.

This is worth checking at startup rather than assuming a small business is automatically exempt.

Home-based businesses should also note that information supplied for the ICO public register can have privacy implications; GOV.UK specifically allows an alternative address or PO box where appropriate rather than requiring a home address to be displayed publicly.

14. Get Free Business Support in the Correct UK Nation

Business support is not identical throughout the UK.

The UK Government maintains separate routes because business support, grants and some regulatory requirements differ between the four nations.

This distinction matters particularly for licences, grants and devolved tax or regulatory matters.

A startup article written as though every local requirement is identical throughout England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland can therefore give misleading advice.

15. A Practical Timeline for Starting a Small Business

Week One: Test the Idea

Before spending heavily:

• define the customer;
• identify the problem being solved;
• speak to potential buyers;
• research competitors;
• test pricing;
• estimate gross margin;
• build a simple financial forecast.

A logo should not come before evidence that somebody wants to buy.

Week Two: Choose the Structure

Decide:

• sole trader, company or partnership;
• who will own the business;
• how much money needs to be invested;
• whether outside investment is expected;
• how much profit needs to be withdrawn personally.

Check any employment contract and immigration restrictions at this stage.

Week Three: Name, Registration and Permissions

Complete the relevant:

• business-name checks;
• domain and trade-mark checks;
• HMRC or Companies House registration;
• Companies House identity verification;
• registered-office arrangements;
• licence applications;
• food registration where required;
• insurance applications.

Do not leave a licence with a 28-day or longer lead time until the launch week.

Before the First Sale

Set up:

• bank account;
• bookkeeping;
• invoice format;
• payment method;
• customer terms;
• privacy notice;
• basic contracts;
• cancellation/refund procedures where relevant;
• tax reserve;
• VAT monitoring.

First 30 Days of Trading

Track:

• sales;
• gross margin;
• customer-acquisition cost;
• expenses;
• cash in the bank;
• invoices owed;
• conversion rate;
• repeat customers;
• VAT-taxable turnover.

Compare real results with the assumptions in the original business plan.

First Three Months

Review whether:

• pricing is sustainable;
• products or services should be removed;
• advertising is profitable;
• a VAT decision is approaching;
• bookkeeping is working;
• working capital is sufficient;
• more funding is genuinely necessary.

Before the First Tax Deadlines

Confirm:

• Self Assessment obligations;
• Corporation Tax obligations;
• VAT position;
• payroll/PAYE position;
• MTD requirements;
• pension obligations;
• Companies House deadlines;
• record retention.

Tax deadlines are easier to manage when the money has already been reserved rather than spent.

16. What Happens If the Business Does Not Work?

Starting a business should also include knowing how to stop one properly.

Closing a Sole Trader Business

A sole trader who stops trading must tell HMRC and submit a final tax return.

Other registrations may also need to be cancelled or updated, including:

• VAT;
• PAYE;
• licences;
• ICO registration;
• insurance;
• local-authority registrations.

Records should not simply be destroyed when the business closes because statutory retention periods can continue afterwards.

Closing a Limited Company

A company cannot simply stop trading and ignore Companies House.

Depending on its circumstances, the correct route may involve:

• keeping a dormant company;
• voluntary strike-off;
• members’ voluntary liquidation;
• creditors’ voluntary liquidation;
• another formal insolvency route.

The current Companies House fee for an online voluntary strike-off application is £13.

Before dissolution, bank balances and other company assets need to be dealt with appropriately. Property left in a dissolved company can pass to the Crown.

Where a company cannot pay its debts, directors should take insolvency advice rather than treating voluntary strike-off as a way to avoid creditors.

17. Small Business Startup Checklist for 2026

Before launch, check that the following have been dealt with:

Business Model

• Customer identified
• Demand tested
• Pricing checked
• Competitors researched
• Costs and margins calculated
• Cash-flow forecast prepared

Legal Structure

• Sole trader/company/partnership selected
• Tax consequences compared
• Liability considered
• Ownership agreed

Personal Eligibility

• Employment contract checked
• Visa conditions checked where applicable
• Benefit implications checked

Name and Brand

• Companies House search completed
• Trade mark search completed
• Domain checked
• Social handles checked

Registration

• HMRC registration completed where required
• Companies House incorporation completed where applicable
• Directors’ identity verification completed
• PSC requirements completed
• Registered-office privacy checked

Regulation

• Business licences checked
• Food registration completed where relevant
• Waste registration checked
• Alcohol licensing checked
• Taxi/private-hire licensing checked
• DBS eligibility checked where relevant

Insurance

• Employers’ Liability arranged where legally required
• Public liability considered
• Professional indemnity considered
• Sector-specific cover considered

Tax and Accounts

• Bookkeeping system selected
• Cash basis versus traditional accounting considered
• VAT threshold monitoring set up
• Voluntary VAT decision made
• MTD requirements checked
• Tax reserve created

Data

• Privacy notice prepared
• Personal data mapped
• ICO fee requirement checked
• Cybersecurity controls established

Employment

• True employee cost calculated
• PAYE set up
• Pension duties checked
• Minimum Wage checked
• SSP processes prepared

Funding

• Startup requirement calculated
• Emergency working-capital reserve considered
• Loan/grant/investment options checked

Final Thoughts

Learning how to start a small business in the UK is no longer simply a matter of registering as self-employed or incorporating a company.

In 2026, a new founder needs to consider Companies House identity verification, higher filing fees, Making Tax Digital, the £90,000 VAT threshold, licensing, data protection, address privacy and significantly higher employment costs.

The strongest approach is to make each decision in sequence.

Validate demand before spending heavily. Choose the structure based on tax, liability, administration and future plans rather than one headline tax figure. Check licences before trading. Establish accounting before transactions become difficult to reconstruct. Understand employment costs before offering a salary.

Most importantly, treat registration as the beginning of running the business rather than the end of the startup process.

A well-prepared founder should reach launch knowing who will buy, what the business will charge, how much it costs to deliver, what registrations apply, when tax becomes due and how long the available cash will last.

That is a much stronger foundation than simply forming a company and hoping customers arrive.

Frequently Asked Questions

How Much Does It Cost to Start a Small Business in the UK?

It depends on the business. A service-based sole trader can have very low initial regulatory costs, while a limited company now pays £100 for online incorporation and £50 for the relevant digital confirmation-statement filing. Insurance, professional advice, licences, premises, equipment and stock can increase the startup requirement substantially.

Do I Need to Register a Business Before I Start Selling?

It depends on the structure, income and activity. Limited companies must be incorporated before trading as that company. Sole-trader HMRC requirements depend on the tax rules, including the £1,000 trading allowance. Some regulated activities also require registration or licensing before trading.

Is It Better to Start as a Sole Trader or Limited Company?

Neither structure is universally better. Sole trading is normally administratively simpler, while a company provides a separate legal entity and may be more appropriate for investment, retained profits, certain contracts or liability considerations. The tax position should be calculated using the founder’s actual expected profit and withdrawals rather than a generic profit threshold.

Can I Start a Business While Working Full-time?

Yes, in many cases, but the employment contract should be checked for restrictions, conflicts of interest, confidentiality obligations or exclusivity terms. Taxable income from employment and business activities may also interact.

Can I Start a UK Business on a Work Visa?

It depends on the immigration route and visa conditions. For example, Skilled Worker visa holders face restrictions around supplementary work and running their own business. Immigration permission should be checked before trading rather than assuming self-employment is permitted.

When Do I Need to Register for VAT?

A business generally needs to register when taxable turnover exceeds £90,000 under the applicable rolling 12-month test or when it expects to exceed the threshold within the relevant forward-looking period. Businesses can also register voluntarily below the threshold.

Do Sole Traders Have to Use Making Tax Digital in 2026?

Some do. MTD for Income Tax became mandatory from 6 April 2026 for sole traders and landlords whose qualifying income exceeded £50,000 under the relevant 2024/25 test. The threshold falls to more than £30,000 from April 2027 and more than £20,000 from April 2028.

Do I Need Business Insurance?

It depends on the activity. Employers’ Liability insurance is generally compulsory once a business becomes an employer, subject to limited exceptions. Other forms such as public liability and professional indemnity depend on the risks, contracts and profession.

Can I Use My Home Address for a Limited Company?

Yes, where the address meets Companies House requirements, but a registered office and service address are publicly available. Anyone who does not want their home address visible should arrange an appropriate alternative before incorporation.

Do Small Businesses Have to Register With the ICO?

Businesses and sole traders processing personal information normally need to assess whether the ICO data-protection fee applies. Some activities are exempt, so the requirement should be checked rather than automatically assuming every business must pay.

What Should I Do if My Business Fails?

A sole trader should notify HMRC, submit the required final return and close relevant registrations. A limited company must use the correct company closure, dormancy or insolvency procedure. Simply abandoning tax and Companies House obligations can create further problems.