How to Issue New Shares [Comprehensive Guide]

This article is a general overview and so if professional advice is needed, please speak with an accountant or business advisor.

Before issueing any shares, you may wish to seek professional advice.

Why would I need to Issue Shares?

There are many reasons why a company will need to issue shares, for example:

• Bring in new investment
• Changing the business structure
• A new shareholder has been authorised to own a portion of the business

The Issue of Shares Procedure

To issue shares in a company is to create new shares, and:

1. All existing members are to agree to the issue of shares via a board meeting.
2. You are to complete a return of allotment of shares via an SH01 form.
3. Create board resolution, meeting minutes, and issue the share certificate(s) to the new shareholder.
4. Include the new issue of shares information in the company's confirmation statement.
5. Report the new changes to Companies House within a month.

There are 2 options you can choose from to issue new shares:

1. You can purchase our Issue of Shares service, and we'll complete and send to you all the necessary documentation and provide meeting minutes, board resolution and blank share certificates on your behalf.  
   
   Once completed, all you will need to do is file a confirmation statement, and report these new changes within 1 month so Companies House is kept informed about your share structure.
2. Another option to issue new shares is to complete an online or paper SH01 form; you will need to submit this yourself to Companies House. Please ensure you follow the issue of shares procedure if considering this option.

I've completed an issue of shares and now need the new share certificates. Where can I find them?

If you have completed an issue of shares or have updated shareholdings in any way, new share certificates should be pre-populated on your account with us. 

Go to My Companies (login required), scroll down until you reach the "Shareholders" section and click "Download". Alternatively, you can download a share certificate template via the "Statutory Forms" section which can be accessed via your dashboard.  

My online portal is not showing the new shareholder details. What is wrong?

If you've completed an issue of shares, and filed the confirmation statement to Companies House, the information normally updates with our system intermittently. You can click on the 'Sync Data with Companies House' button which is allocated within your company details page (and clicking on the appropriate company name). This will ensure the information Companies House have is updated with our system.