Company charges
Company charges checklist
A step-by-step list for reading the charges on one company's Companies House record, whether it is your own company or one you are looking at. Work down the table, tick each step and print it to keep with your notes. What each label means is in our charge terms table.
Before you start
You need the company's name or number. The register is free to search. This list does not explain the terms: for that, keep our Companies House charge terms table open alongside it.
The checklist
| Step | What to check | Where | Done |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Find the company and open its charges. Check the name and number match the company you mean. | Search on the Companies House register, then the Charges tab. | Not done |
| 2 | Count the charges. Note how many are outstanding, satisfied and part satisfied. | The line at the top of the Charges tab, for example "1 outstanding, 1 satisfied, 0 part satisfied". | Not done |
| 3 | For each outstanding charge, note who holds it and the charge code. The rule that gives each charge a unique reference code (section 859I) applies to charges created on or after 6 April 2013 (the 2013 Regulations, regulation 6). Older charges have no code, so their entry shows the type of document instead. | "Persons entitled" and the "Charge code" heading in each entry. | Not done |
| 4 | Compare the created and delivered dates. The period allowed for delivery is "21 days beginning with the day after the date of creation of the charge" (section 859A). A charge delivered later than that needed a court order, according to gov.uk. | "Created" and "Delivered" in each entry. | Not done |
| 5 | Read the type of charge. Note whether it is fixed, floating or both, and whether the floating charge covers everything the company owns. | The lines near the end of each entry: "Contains fixed charge.", "Contains floating charge.", "Floating charge covers all the property or undertaking of the company." | Not done |
| 6 | Check for a negative pledge. Every charge filing must say whether the charge stops or limits new security ranking equal with it or ahead of it (section 859D). | "Contains negative pledge." near the end of the entry. | Not done |
| 7 | Open the filed charge document if you need the exact terms. The register says a negative pledge exists; only the document says what it allows. | The MR01 filing link in the entry ("Registration of a charge (MR01)"). | Not done |
| 8 | Check each charge's status against what you know. If a debt has been paid off but its charge still says Outstanding, nobody has filed a satisfaction. gov.uk says "You do not have to tell us when a charge is satisfied". | "Status" in each entry. | Not done |
| 9 | If it is your company and the debt is repaid, ask the lender for a release, then file MR04. | Our deed of release request letter and MR04 filing checklist. | Not done |
Register labels as shown on the Companies House find and update service, read 21 October 2026. Sources: Companies Act 2006, section 859A, section 859D and section 859I; Companies Act 2006 (Amendment of Part 25) Regulations 2013, regulation 6; gov.uk, register a charge, read 21 October 2026.
What the register can't tell you
The register shows that a charge exists, who holds it and what type it is. It does not show the amount borrowed, the balance today or the full terms. If a decision depends on those, read the charge document and the loan agreement, or ask a solicitor to. If the question is whether a company can borrow more with a charge already in place, see borrowing with an existing debenture.
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Adam Parker
Founder of Muswell Rose Consulting Ltd, which trades as Established Finance · Managing Director of Penny, an invoice finance business, from July 2020 to November 2023, and working in mortgages, commercial finance and fintech lending since 2010 (career history; career record).
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