Every Australian company must have a registered office: a physical street address in Australia, not a PO Box, where ASIC sends official notices and where legal documents can be served. It doesn't have to be where the business operates, but if the company doesn't occupy the premises, the owner must have agreed in writing. If the address changes, you must tell ASIC within 28 days.
For a foreign-owned company with no Australian premises, this is not a formality. The registered office is where the annual statement, ASIC warnings and creditors' court papers arrive. If nobody is watching that mailbox, the company can be struck off or wound up without its owners overseas ever knowing.
The three company addresses
ASIC's company addresses guide separates three addresses that people often treat as one.
| Address | Required? | PO Box allowed? | What it's for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Registered office | Yes | No | Official notices from ASIC; service of legal documents |
| Principal place of business | Yes | No | Where the company mainly conducts business |
| Contact address | Optional | Yes | Where ASIC can send correspondence |
The registered office and the principal place of business are both visible to anyone who searches or buys information from the companies register. A founder who registered the company at their Sydney apartment should know that the address is public.
If the company uses a registered agent, ASIC records the agent's address as the company's contact address, and it may also be used as the registered office. When you change agents, check that both addresses move with you. This is a common source of lost mail.
Rules for the registered office
It must be a real street address in Australia
No PO Boxes, no overseas addresses and no "care of" a foreign parent. ASIC's own wording is that the registered office must be a physical street address in Australia.
Consent from the occupier
The office doesn't have to be somewhere the company conducts business. ASIC gives the example of your accountant's office. But if the company doesn't occupy the premises:
- the company must keep a record of the owner's or occupier's written consent to use the address, and
- when the address is given to ASIC, the company must state that this consent was given.
ASIC doesn't ask you to lodge the consent document. You keep it. If the occupier later says they never agreed, the company is the one that has to produce it.
What happens when the occupier withdraws
Accountants change firms, serviced offices close and providers stop acting for unpaid clients. ASIC's information sheet on address disputes explains that an occupier who no longer consents can tell ASIC. ASIC will try to contact the company's officers to fix the problem. If the officers don't notify a new registered office, ASIC may change the address on the register to a director's address.
For a foreign-owned company, that can mean the resident director's home becomes the registered office by default. It also means a gap in which mail goes to an address where nobody is expecting it.
Virtual offices and registered office services
A "virtual office" is fine as a registered office if three things are true:
- It is a physical street address in Australia, not a mail drop or PO Box.
- The occupier has given written consent and you have kept a copy.
- Someone opens the mail promptly and sends it on to the person who acts on it.
The third point is where cheap services fail. A service that batches mail and scans it once a week can cost you most of a short deadline before you even read the letter.
From 1 July 2026, providing a registered office address for another person's company is a service regulated by AUSTRAC under the reformed AML/CTF laws. Expect a reputable provider to ask for identity and ownership information before it lets you use its address. Our guide to the AML/CTF reforms for company services explains why.
Why the registered office matters: service of documents
ASIC sends official notices and letters to the registered office, including the annual statement and its invoice. Our annual review fee guide explains what a missed statement costs.
It is also a place where legal documents can be served on the company. ASIC notes that documents can be served by leaving them at, or posting them to, the registered office, or by handing a copy to a director who lives in Australia. Service by post can still be effective even if the company has moved, as long as the document was properly addressed, prepaid and posted.
That matters most for a creditor's statutory demand. A company ordinarily has 21 days to respond to a statutory demand. ASIC's page on temporary restructuring relief records that a longer six-month window applied only until 31 March 2021. If the demand sits unopened in a forwarding queue for two weeks, the company has lost most of its time to pay, settle or challenge the debt, and the consequences of ignoring one are serious. Get legal advice the day one arrives.
Changing the registered office
ASIC's change a company address page sets out the process:
- Log in to the company officeholder portal (or have your registered agent do it).
- Select Form 484 – Change to company details, then the change of address option.
- Enter the date of change, the new address and which address types it applies to: registered office, principal place of business, or both.
- Confirm whether the company occupies the premises. If it doesn't, enter the occupier's name and confirm they have agreed.
Two timing points catch people out:
- 28 days. The company must notify ASIC within 28 days of the change, or a late fee applies. The 2026–27 late fees are $102 (up to one month late) and $428 (more than one month late), per ASIC's fee schedule.
- 7-day delay. A new registered office takes effect 7 days after you submit the form. Lodge before you leave the old address and keep collecting mail there for that week.
The contact address is changed separately: Form 486 if the company has no registered agent, Form 362 if it has one.
Registered foreign companies are different
Everything above applies to an Australian proprietary company (a Pty Ltd with an ACN). A foreign company registered in Australia as a branch (with an ARBN) also needs a registered office, but it has its own notice periods and rules about office hours, and its local agent carries responsibility for its obligations. See our guide to the local agent for a foreign company.
A checklist for foreign-owned companies
- Name one person in Australia who receives every piece of ASIC and legal mail and forwards it the same business day.
- Hold the occupier's consent on file, signed and dated.
- Diarise the review date, so you know when the annual statement should arrive and can chase it if it doesn't. ASIC says to contact it if the statement hasn't arrived 15 business days after the review date.
- Use ASIC's Company Alert service if you want to be told when documents are lodged against your company.
- When you change providers, update the registered office, the principal place of business and the contact address in the same lodgement.
- Never leave the old provider's address on the register after they have stopped acting.
Our registered office service
A registered office with ASIC mail scanning is included in our Resident Director + Compliance and Governance Partner packages. The mail lands with the same team that runs your compliance calendar, so a statement or demand is acted on, not just filed. Prices are on our pricing page, and the wider annual obligations are set out on our compliance page. We don't give legal advice on disputes or demands; if one arrives, speak to your lawyer straight away.
Current as at 27 October 2026. This page is general information, not legal, tax or financial advice.
Frequently asked questions
Can a registered office be a PO Box?
No. ASIC requires a physical street address in Australia. You can give ASIC a separate contact address, and that one can be a PO Box.
Can we use a virtual office as our registered office?
Yes, if it is a real street address in Australia, the occupier has agreed in writing, and someone there actually receives and forwards your mail promptly. A mail-forwarding service that only scans post weekly is a risk for court documents with short deadlines.
Does the registered office have to be where we do business?
No. Many companies use their accountant's or a corporate services provider's office. The place where the business actually operates is reported separately as the principal place of business.
How long do we have to tell ASIC about a new registered office?
28 days from the change, using Form 484 in the ASIC portal. The change takes effect 7 days after you submit it, so lodge before you move out of the old address, not after.
Is our registered office address public?
Yes. Anyone who buys information from the companies register can see it, which is one reason founders working from home often prefer a professional address.
Official sources
- ASIC: Company addresses asic.gov.au
- ASIC: Change a company address asic.gov.au
- ASIC INFO 192: Disputes about company addresses and company mail asic.gov.au
- ASIC: Temporary restructuring relief (statutory demand periods) asic.gov.au
- ASIC: Company annual review asic.gov.au
Checked against these sources on . Fees, thresholds and forms change: confirm with the source before you lodge.
General information about Australian law and practice, not legal or tax advice for your circumstances. Check the official sources, or ask your adviser, before you act.