Both charities and Community Interest Companies (CICs) can be run as companies through Inform Direct, but each comes with its own extra rules on top of normal company law.

This guide explains how the two structures differ, what Inform Direct does and doesn't currently support for each, and where to find more detail.

Charitable companies (limited by guarantee)

Most charities that are also companies are set up as a private company limited by guarantee. There are no shareholders, instead the company has members, each guaranteeing a nominal amount (often £1) towards the company's debts if it's wound up. The people running the company are still legally its directors, though a charity will usually also call them trustees.

Dual regulation. A charitable company is regulated by Companies House and by the relevant charity regulator, and has to meet both sets of filing obligations:

• England and Wales: register with the Charity Commission once annual income reaches £5,000.
• Scotland: register with OSCR regardless of income; there's no minimum threshold.
• Northern Ireland: register with the Charity Commission for Northern Ireland (CCNI); a registration threshold has been under consultation but isn't in force, so registration currently applies regardless of size.

This means a charitable company normally files a confirmation statement and company-law filings with Companies House, as well as a separate annual return and accounts with its charity regulator. These are two distinct sets of obligations, not one.

PSC register still applies. A common misconception is that charities are exempt from the PSC (People with Significant Control) regime. They are not: only Charitable Incorporated Organisations (CIOs), a different, charity-only legal form that isn't a company at all, are exempt. A charitable company limited by guarantee must maintain a PSC register in the same way as any other company. See Does the PSC Legislation Apply to My Company?

Authentication codes and identity verification work the same way. There's no charity-specific exemption or different process for Companies House authentication codes or director/PSC identity verification. A charitable company follows exactly the same rules as any other company on Inform Direct.

Micro-entity accounts aren't available. Under section 384B of the Companies Act 2006, a company limited by guarantee that is also a charity is specifically excluded from the micro-entity accounting provisions, regardless of its size. See What Types of Company are Excluded From Micro-Entity Provisions.

Accounts filing through Inform Direct. Guarantee companies, charitable or not, currently cannot file accounts through Inform Direct. See Filing Accounts with Inform Direct for which company types are supported.

For more on how membership works for this structure, see Companies Limited by Guarantee: Member Rights Explained.

Community Interest Companies (CICs)

A CIC is a limited company, either by shares or by guarantee, set up to use its profits and assets for the public good rather than for private gain. A CIC is not a charity, and the two statuses are mutually exclusive: a single company cannot be both a registered charity and a CIC at the same time. (A registered charity can, however, own a CIC as a trading subsidiary.) Unlike charities, CICs pay corporation tax in the same way as any other company and don't receive charitable tax reliefs.

Extra regulation on top of Companies House. Every CIC is also overseen by the Office of the Regulator of Community Interest Companies (the CIC Regulator). At formation you must submit a CIC36 community interest statement and your own bespoke articles. Inform Direct doesn't provide template CIC articles, so you'll need a solicitor to draft these unless you have the expertise in-house. The Regulator must approve the application before Companies House will register the company, which typically makes CIC formations slower than a standard company. See How do I form a Community interest company (CIC) via Inform Direct?

Higher incorporation fee. CIC incorporations carry a higher statutory Companies House fee than a standard formation (currently £115 online or £139 by post).

The asset lock. A CIC's assets are "locked": they must be used to support the CIC's community purposes, and can't be transferred for less than market value except to another asset-locked body (such as a charity or another CIC) or for the direct benefit of the community. On dissolution, any surplus assets must go to another asset-locked body.

Dividend and interest caps (CICs limited by shares only). A CIC limited by shares can pay dividends, but the total paid across all shares is capped at 35% of distributable profits in a year, with unused headroom carried forward for up to five years. Interest on performance-related loans is capped at 20% of the average debt outstanding over the preceding 12 months. These caps don't apply to CICs limited by guarantee, which don't issue shares.

The CIC34 report. Every CIC, regardless of size, must file a Community Interest Company Report (CIC34) alongside its annual accounts, with a £15 fee. The report confirms directors' remuneration and sets out the community benefit the CIC has delivered that year, and the Regulator reviews it to confirm the CIC is still meeting its community interest purpose. Inform Direct doesn't currently support filing accounts (or the CIC34) for CICs, see Filing Accounts with Inform Direct, so this needs to be filed directly with Companies House.

PSC register still applies. As with charitable companies, there's no PSC exemption for CICs. A CIC maintains a PSC register in the same way as any other company limited by shares or guarantee.

Quick comparison

Charitable company (limited by guarantee): regulated by Companies House plus a charity regulator (Charity Commission, OSCR or CCNI); PSC register applies; no micro-entity accounts; can't file accounts via Inform Direct.

CIC: regulated by Companies House plus the CIC Regulator; PSC register applies; asset lock; dividend/interest caps if limited by shares; CIC34 report required alongside accounts; can't file accounts (or the CIC34) via Inform Direct.

See also: What Types of Company Does Inform Direct Support?, Does the PSC Legislation Apply to My Company?