For the purposes of the registration of companies under the Companies Orders, the Department shall continue to maintain and administer an office of the Department in Northern Ireland at such place as the Department thinks fit.

The Department may for those purposes appoint an officer as registrar of companies and one or more than one officer as assistant registrar of companies.

The Department may direct a seal or seals to be prepared for the authentication of documents required for or in connection with the registration of companies.

Paragraph (5) applies where by virtue of Article 11(1) of the Deregulation and Contracting Out (Northern Ireland) Order 1996 a person is authorised by the registrar to accept delivery of any class of documents which are under any provision of the Companies Orders to be delivered to the registrar.

The registrar shall allocate to every company a number, which shall be known as the company's registered number.

Companies' registered numbers shall be in such form, consisting of one or more sequences of figures or letters, as the registrar may from time to time determine.

The registrar may upon adopting a new form of registered number make such changes of existing registered numbers as appear to him necessary.

A change of a company's registered number has effect from the date on which the company is notified by the registrar of the change; but for a period of three years beginning with the date on which that notification is sent by the registrar F7any requirement imposed by regulations made under section 82 of the Companies Act 2006 as to the use of the company's registered number on F6business letters, order forms and websites is satisfied by the use of either the old number or the new.

For each company to which Article 640A applies the registrar shall keep, in such form as he thinks fit, a register of the branches registered by the company under paragraph 1 of Schedule 20A.

The registrar shall allocate to every branch registered by him under this Article a number, which shall be known as the branch's registered number.

Branches' registered numbers shall be in such form, consisting of one or more sequences of figures or letters, as the registrar may from time to time determine.

The registrar may upon adopting a new form of registered number make such changes of existing registered numbers as appear to him necessary.

A change of a branch's registered number has effect from the date on which the company is notified by the registrar of the change; but for a period of three years beginning with the date on which that notification is sent by the registrar the requirement of Article 643(3) as to the use of the branch's registered number on business letters and order forms is satisfied by the use of either the old number or the new.

This Article applies to the delivery to the registrar under any provision of the Companies Orders of documents in legible form.

If a document is delivered to the registrar which does not comply with the requirements of this Article, he may serve on the person by whom the document was delivered (or, if there are two or more such persons, on any of them) a notice indicating the respect in which the document does not comply.

The information contained in a document delivered to the registrar under the Companies Orders may be recorded and kept by him in any form he thinks fit, provided it is possible to inspect the information and to produce a copy of it in legible form.

This is sufficient compliance with any duty of his to keep, file or register the document.

The originals of documents delivered to the registrar in legible form shall be kept by him for ten years, after which they may be destroyed.

Where a company has been dissolved, the registrar may, at any time after the expiration of two years from the date of the dissolution, direct that any records in his custody relating to the company may be removed to the Public Record Office of Northern Ireland; and records in respect of which such a direction is given shall be disposed of in accordance with the statutory provisions relating to that Office.

In paragraph (3) “company” includes a company provisionally or completely registered under the Joint Stock Companies Act 1844.

Electronic communications may be used for the delivery of any document to the registrar under any provision of the Companies Orders (including delivery of a document in the prescribed form), provided that such delivery is in such form and manner as is directed by the registrar.

Where the document is required under any provision of the Companies Orders to be signed or sealed, it shall instead be authenticated in such manner as is directed by the registrar.

If a document is delivered to the registrar which does not comply with the requirements imposed by or under this Article, he may serve on the person by whom the document was delivered (or, if there are two or more such persons, on any of them) a notice indicating the respect in which the document does not comply.

In this Article references to the delivery of a document include references to the forwarding, lodging, registering, sending or submission of a document and to the giving of a notice.

Regulations made under paragraph (1)(a) requiring the payment of a fee in respect of a matter for which no fee was previously payable or increasing a fee shall be subject to affirmative resolution.

Fees paid to the registrar under the Companies Orders shall beF17 paid into the Consolidated Fund.

It is hereby declared that the registrar may charge a fee for any services provided by him otherwise than in pursuance of any obligation imposed on him by law.

Any requirement of the Companies Orders as to the supply by the registrar of a document may, if the registrar thinks fit, be satisfied by the communication by the registrar of the requisite information in any non-legible form prescribed for the purposes of this Article by regulations or approved by him.

Where the document is required to be signed by him or sealed with his official seal, it shall instead be authenticated in such manner as may be prescribed by regulations or approved by the registrar.

If a company, having made default in complying with any provision of the Companies Orders which requires it toF25 deliver a document to the registrar, or to give notice to him of any matter, fails to make good the default within 14 days after the service of a notice on the company requiring it to do so, the court may, on an application made to it by any member or creditor of the company or by the registrar, make an order directing the company and any officer of it to make good the default within such time as may be specified in the order.

The court's order may provide that all costs of and incidental to the application shall be borne by the company or by any officers of it responsible for the default.

Nothing in this Article prejudices the operation of any statutory provision imposing penalties on a company or its officers in respect of any such default as is mentioned in paragraph (1).

The Department may by order subject to negative resolution vary paragraph (1) by the addition or deletion of any class of body, except any within paragraph (1)(a) or (b) whether incorporated or unincorporated.

In this Part—

References in this Part to delivering a document include sending, forwarding, producing or (in the case of a notice) giving it.