Our experts will guide you in your choice of domicile.
Our experts will guide you in your choice of domicile.
A company's registered office is super important for how it runs day-to-day. Basically, it's the official address of your business. It's a must-have from a legal and practical point of view.
The term registered office defines the legal address of a company. It informs customers, suppliers, and government agencies about the company's nationality and the law governing it in the event of a dispute. It must appear on contracts. The registered office is mentioned on official letters, the Kbis extract, and invoices. The articles of association must also be updated.
The registered office is the main place where partners meet in assembly. The Trade and Companies Register (RCS) lists all registered offices in France. In addition, the registered office is linked to the company's SIREN number. In official communications, the legal notices specify the address of the company's registered office and its share capital.
Moving a company's registered address from one location to another can happen for several reasons. If the company's address is the same as the manager's home address, and they move, the old home can't continue to be the company's registered address. You'll need to complete the transfer formalities.
A company may need to move its registered office due to the expiry of its commercial lease. Moving the registered address to a new location involves completing the change formalities.
To get financial aid from a department, region, or even the government, a company might decide to change its registered address. Setting up shop in urban enterprise zones can be a big financial win for a company. To make it happen, they might need to move their registered address.
A company's registered office address is provided during the initial stages of its creation and registration. During its existence, a company may request the transfer of its registered office to a new address. The change of address of a company's registered office is recorded in writing by the decision-making body. In practice, this decision implies a modification of the articles of association and the Kbis extract. The procedures for changing the address of the registered office vary depending on the company's legal form.
Within a SARL (Société à responsabilité limitée - Limited Liability Company), a change of registered office address is decided during a meeting between the partners, as they are the decision-making body. This process can be simplified by a statutory provision giving the managers the power to change the company's registered address themselves. This statutory prerogative is discussed in the General Meeting and is recorded in the minutes.
In an SAS (Société par actions simplifiée - simplified joint-stock company) or SASU (Société par actions simplifiée unipersonnelle - single-member simplified joint-stock company), the process for changing the company's registered address is set out in the articles of association. The decision is made either by the Shareholders' Meeting, the Management Committee, or the company's President.
An EURL (Single-member limited liability company) can change its registered office address by the simple decision of its sole partner. The company's articles of association may leave this decision-making power to the company's manager himself, provided that the latter are signed by the sole partner and appear in the form of minutes.
If a SCI (Société civile immobilière - Real Estate Civil Company) wants to change its registered office, it must refer to the specific provisions in its articles of association. Otherwise, the partners must unanimously vote to transfer the registered office to a new location.
When a SA (Société anonyme) transfers its registered office, it can convene an extraordinary general meeting to notify the transfer of the registered office abroad. The transfer decision can be made in a smaller committee by the company's supervisory board or its board of directors.
For a company, changing the address of its registered office involves completing a file and sending it to the Trade and Companies Register (RCS). The administrative formality is carried out in the form of a declaration to the registry of the commercial court on which the new domiciliation depends. The legal representative also has the option of going through the business formalities center (CFE).
As part of the formalities for changing the address of the registered office, the company's legal representative must provide a list of several documents:
If the company's legal representative can't sign these documents, they need to provide proof of power of attorney being given to another member of the company. Once all the paperwork is done, the company will get a new KBIS extract, which is essential for its day-to-day admin.
Once the decision to change the address of the registered office has been made, there is a one-month deadline to publish a notice of transfer of the registered office in a legal gazette (JAL). This way, the public is officially informed of the transfer of the registered office.
The published notice includes the company's old address and its new registered address. The geographical location plays a key role in the process:
When changing domiciliation, the manager(s) of the company are obliged to communicate the new address to their customers and suppliers. This decision can be transmitted electronically or by post. The formalities for transferring a company's registered office can be carried out and followed online.
When a director or partners decide to change the registered office address of a company, there are several costs to consider, which vary depending on the geographical location and legal form of the company.
Publishing a legal notice is mandatory when you move your company's registered office. If the address change is within the same department (administrative region), you only need to publish one notice in an authorized newspaper. However, if the company moves to another department, two publications are required: one in the original department and another in the new address's department. This leads to additional costs. But don't worry, these costs are generally manageable and it's just a necessary administrative step to make the change official.
News
Reading time: 6 min
