Are You Looking For Company Secretarial Services?

Looking for a company secretarial services?

When you form a limited company in Ireland, you need to appoint a company secretary. There is nothing laid down in law that says they must have any qualifications to do the job, directors just have to feel they are competent. If the company secretary is an individual, they need to be over 18 years of age, and if the company only has one director, that same person cannot be the company secretary. The duties they need to perform are whatever the directors want them to be, but there are so many legalities with a limited company that more and more directors are turning to experts to carry out their company secretarial services.

The Many Ways Company Secretarial Services Could Help You

Every business is different and will expect a different level of assistance from the company secretarial services they use. Among the services on offer, you can expect to find:

• Company formations – this can be more complex than it sounds. The name needs to be checked for usability. When the company is formed it’s a separate legal entity, with its own responsibilities. On formation you should expect to receive a Certificate of Incorporation, a Memorandum & Articles of Association, Share Certificates, a Constitution Document, and various other items that are all part of the company set up.
• Annual returns – an important part of company secretarial services is to ensure that forms are completed before the date that will incur fines and penalties. The annual return is one of these forms that have to be submitted to the Companies Registration Office (CRO). Abridged accounts, which are basically of shortened version of the full accounts, also need to be submitted to the CRO within certain deadlines. Under certain circumstances, the High Court or District Court can give an extension to the time limits, if it feels it is just to do so.
• Changing details – over the life of any company many things can change. Directors, registered office address, and shareholdings are just some of the details company secretarial services would change for you. Another aspect of the service they offer is to make sure your company is always compliant, and its information at the CRO is always up to date.

There are many other things that your company secretarial services can do to make running your limited company easier. Once you are happy with your working relationship, then you get on with your job and leave the rest to them.

Dormant And Non Trading Companies

There can be many reasons why a company is dormant and not trading. Sometimes they are formed in anticipation, but the trading just hasn’t started yet. This does not exempt them from the legal requirements, and every year annual returns and the associated paperwork still has to be completed and submitted to the CRO by the specified deadline. It is still liable to the same large fines and penalties a trading company has to pay if the forms are not submitted as and when they should be.

Involuntary Strike Off

If a company does not file its annual returns and abridged accounts etc. After two consecutive years the CRO is likely to take it through the involuntary strike off process.  The Revenue can also do this, if the appropriate forms informing them trading has not commenced are not submitted to them. Just some of the implications of an involuntary strike off can be:

• The company will cease to exist as a legal entity from the date of the strike off
• The limited liability afforded by a company is lost, and if it continues to trade it is deemed to being doing so as a sole trader or partnership
• The assets of the company become the property of the state
• Banks cannot lend money to, or have an account in the name of, a legal entity that no longer exists

It is possible to restore a company, but how you do it, and the costs involved, depend on whether it is a CRO Strike Off or Revenue Strike Off, and how long ago it happened. A strike off that took places less than 12 ago months is obviously a lot less hassle than one that happened more than a year ago.

Other Services You May Need

There are many other services available to help you, leaving you to concentrate on running your company. At Kane Bergin & Company we can also take care of all your bookkeeping needs. Many companies have discovered how much easier it is to outsource this work to experts, and it’s often cheaper than paying the fines and penalties you will face if you get it wrong. Having the peace of mind of knowing your record keeping is in good order stops all the worry when statutory visits are carried out.

If Kane Bergin & Company have completed your bookkeeping, the accounts and audit will be an easier job with less work. Our bookkeeping and accounting departments will work together to ensure you have the most efficient service in this area. Preparing management accounts will be simpler as well, which can be handy when your bank requests them.

This still leaves the Revenue to consider, and how much tax they are going to expect you to pay. We have tax experts that will be able to advise you on the most tax efficient ways to run your business, as none of us want to hand over more money than we need to.

Your job is to run your business, to make it as profitable and secure as you can. Our job is to take care of all the associated legal and accounting matters to leave you free to do that.

Why not find out more about how we can help you by calling us today on 01 969 6306. If you prefer, you can email us at info@kanebergin.ie, or complete our contact form and we will get in touch with you.