Resigned or removed: the same filing

A secretary usually resigns by writing to the directors. A secretary can also be removed by the directors, who normally decide that at a board meeting; check the company’s articles for how it should be done. Either way, Companies House only needs to know that the person has stopped being secretary and on what date1, and it must hear within 14 days1,3.

Use the date the appointment actually ended: the date in the resignation letter, or the date of the board’s decision. Keep the letter or the board minute with the company’s records.

A worked example

A secretary’s resignation takes effect on 11 January 2027. The 14 days begin that day, so the notice must reach Companies House by 24 January 20271.

Does the company need a new secretary?

No, if it’s a private company: “A private company is not required to have a secretary”2. Without one, anything that would have been sent to the secretary can be sent to the company itself, and anything the secretary would have done can be done by a director or by someone the directors authorise2. Many small companies simply let the directors take over the paperwork. Read whether a company needs a secretary for what the role involves.

If the company’s articles still require a secretary, the directors can appoint someone new, or the shareholders can change the articles.

Check your company’s dates and set a reminder

Search the Companies House register. Your company page shows its filing dates, what to file next and a reminder you can set.

What changes on the register

The former secretary stays on the company’s public record, shown as resigned on the date given. Companies no longer keep their own register of secretaries, so the Companies House record is the one that must be accurate4. If it’s the secretary’s name or address that changed, rather than the person, that’s a different filing: read when a secretary’s details change.

Filing the change

Fileyear’s secretary removal picks the secretary from the Companies House register, asks for the date they stopped, files form TM02, for a person or a company, and prepares a board minute for your records.