People and roles
Appoint a company secretary in
What a company secretary is, who can be one, whether you need one at all — and what the role is not.
Herm has no government of its own: it is owned and administered by the States of Guernsey, which have leased the whole island to one tenant company since 2008 — so Guernsey’s laws, taxes and registries apply there.
A Guernsey company may, but need not, have a secretary. The role Guernsey does insist on is the resident agent.
- 2 Before you apply · 100%
- 2 You · 100%
What Guernsey asks for instead: a resident agentYou
A Guernsey company needs at least one member and at least one director, and may, but need not, have a secretary. Every director must first be registered with the Guernsey Registry, and the company needs a resident agent: a Guernsey-resident director of the company, or a licensed corporate services provider.
Why now: The resident agent decides whether you need a provider at all.
What you do not need
- A company secretary.
Keep going
- Employ someoneThe registrations and the monthly return that come with a first employee.Open
- Shares, plainlyWhat a share is, what to decide before you apply, the certificates and the register — and what happens when shares change hands.Open
- Start a companyForm a limited company: who it needs, its office, its rules, the application — and everything that follows, in order.Open
- All of it, in orderPlan my start draws every journey you need, for your place, with your costs.Plan my start
Words in this journey:Company secretaryDirectorMemberResident agentCorporate services providerLimited company