UK company extract

What is meant by a company extract

In many countries, a company extract is a formal certified statement of a company's registered particulars issued by the national registrar. Businesses in Europe, the Middle East and Asia often use the term in tenders, banking forms and onboarding packs, and expect a single stamped page confirming a company exists and who runs it.

The United Kingdom does not use the word extract in that way. The register is public and free to search, and the formal documents are certificates of incorporation, certified copies of filed documents and certified constitutional documents, all issued directly by Companies House.

Outside those official documents, the term is commonly used in the UK to mean any document that summarises what the public register records about a company. That is what the report on this site provides: a clear, dated compilation of public register information, independently prepared and presented in one A4 PDF.

What the PDF report includes

The report is generated from a fresh retrieval of the Companies House public register at the moment you order it, and every page carries the company name, company number, your order reference and the retrieval date and time.

• Everything in the free company summary
• Current and former officers, with appointment and resignation dates where recorded
• Persons with significant control recorded on the register
• Accounts and confirmation statement dates and filing position
• Registered charges, and whether they are outstanding or satisfied
• Insolvency information where it exists
• A filing history summary
• A formatted A4 PDF you can download, print, email and keep

What is free and what is paid

Searching this site is free and unlimited. Selecting a company shows a free summary covering its registered name, number, status, incorporation date, company type, jurisdiction, registered office address, previous names and SIC codes. No account or sign-up is required.

The paid PDF adds the sections most people want in a single document: officers, persons with significant control, accounts and confirmation statement position, registered charges, insolvency information where it exists and a filing history summary. You are paying for retrieval, formatting and a dated document you can keep, not for access to the data itself, which remains available free from Companies House.

When a company extract is asked for

In most of these situations the requesting party simply wants a legible, dated document showing the registered details. An independently prepared PDF is usually enough. Ask first if you are unsure, because it costs nothing to check and saves ordering the wrong thing.

• Supplier onboarding packs that ask for proof of registration
• Tender and framework applications with a company-details requirement
• Overseas buyers or agents unfamiliar with the UK public register
• Internal client files that need a dated record of a counterparty
• Insurance, leasing or finance applications requesting company particulars

Important limitation

If a bank, court, notary, embassy or overseas authority has asked you for a certified, apostilled or legalised document, this report will not satisfy that requirement. Certified documents must come from Companies House itself, and an apostille is issued separately by the Legalisation Office.

Company Search UK is an independent service. It is not Companies House, not part of the UK Government and not affiliated with or endorsed by either. The report is not certified, is not an official filing, and does not include a credit score, credit check or any assessment of whether a company is safe to trade with.

Free website search compared with the paid PDF report

Searching this site and viewing a company summary is free. The optional PDF report is paid, and what you are paying for is convenience: retrieval, formatting, a dated snapshot and a document you can download and keep. The underlying information is public and is also available directly from Companies House at no charge.

Frequently asked questions

Related pages

• UK Company Information ReportSee exactly what the UK Company Information Report contains, how it compares with the free company summary, and when a dated downloadable PDF of register information is worth ordering.
• Companies House ReportDownload a formatted PDF report built from Companies House public register data, covering company details, officers, control, filings and charges. Independent, one-off price, no subscription.
• Sample Company ReportSee the structure of the UK Company Information Report PDF section by section, page by page, so you know exactly what you receive before you order one.
• Company reportsThe optional downloadable PDF report and what it costs.
• UK Company SearchFree UK company search by name or company number. View company status, registered office, incorporation date, company type and SIC codes from the Companies House public register.
• Data Sources and UpdatesWhere Company Search UK gets its company information, how often it is refreshed, the licensing that applies and the known limits of public register data.
• Company Details SearchFind the registered details of a UK company: legal name, registration number, status, incorporation date, company type, registered office and SIC codes, free of charge.