For individuals, it's common to have a proof of address drawn up when a minor or adult child is living at their parents' home.
Since they don't have any proof of address in their name, parents must certify, via a certificate of accommodation, that their child lives with them, in the same household.
For businesses, it works the same way. Just as an individual has a place of residence, a company has a registered office.
You can set it up at your home, in a commercial space, or with a domiciliation company, for example.
A proof of address is often established when the company is domiciled at the manager's personal address. This practice is often popular because of the financial savings it generates.
Let's explore together what you need to know about providing proof of address for your company.
The role of a proof of address is to certify that the company does indeed have a business address, i.e. a registered office.
This is a legal obligation and one of the first formalities to complete when creating a business.
The official tax address is a key part of a company's identity: it determines its nationality, where it's taxed, and which authorities are responsible if there's a dispute.
Most importantly, you need a registered office to get your registration with the RCS (Trade and Companies Register) and start doing business.
Authorizations are issued by the registry of the commercial court, with which a company creation file must be filed.
The usefulness of a proof of address depends on where you want to register your company.
You can use the manager's personal address, unless otherwise stated in your co-ownership regulations.
In cities with more than 200,000 inhabitants and in the Hauts-de-Seine, Seine-Saint-Denis, and Val-de-Marne departments, there are more restrictions:
- If the activity is carried out upstairs, it can't involve receiving customers or goods.
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For companies, hosting the company at the director's home can't last longer than 5 years. In this case, you'll need a certificate of accommodation from the business owner who owns or rents their home.
If the company is located in commercial premises that it owns or rents, there's no need for a certificate of accommodation since it will have all the necessary documents to prove that it's a suitable location for its registered office.
For example, a lease agreement in your name serves as proof of address.
If it chooses to be hosted in the premises of another company such as a domiciliation company, it can choose its address based on the proposals, while making significant savings.
We'll come back later to all the advantages of this alternative
If you decide to opt for the manager's personal residence, the manager must write the company's accommodation certificate.
So it's common for them to do it for their own company. This practice is perfectly legal.
If you decide to opt for a domiciliation company, an accommodation certificate written by the manager of the domiciliation company is required.
Choosing a prestigious domiciliation address from a wide range of carefully selected locations generates a very significant visibility boost for your business.
Business address providers also offer many services to make life easier for all teams and focus their efforts on higher value-added activities (mail management, administrative and legal assistance, telephone answering, meeting room rentals, etc.).
At first glance, many business owners prefer to set up their company's registered office at their home address, thinking they'll save money.
However, this forces them to disclose their personal address to the general public.
That must appear on all your official documents (invoices, quotes, delivery notes, etc.).
Many people decide to backtrack to better protect their privacy.
A great, affordable, and really useful option, business domiciliation has been getting more and more popular for years. It really helps boost a company's visibility and lets teams focus on what's most important: growing the business.
Written by our expert Paul LASBARRERES-CANDAU
January 14, 2019
