Can a virtual address be used as the registered office address and place of business address?

In Australia, a virtual address can be used as a company's registered office with ASIC if certain conditions are met.

In Australia, a virtual address can indeed be used as the registered office address for a company with ASIC, provided it meets certain conditions such as being a physical address in Australia and capable of receiving communications. However, for a principal place of business address, which is where the company primarily conducts its business, a virtual address may not be suitable. It's important to differentiate between these two types of addresses and ensure compliance with the legal requirements for each when registering a company.

By way of further clarification, ASIC sets out three requirements for the nomination of a company’s registered office address, and they are:

  1. The company must be able to receive correspondence at this address;
  2. It must be a physical street address, i.e. it cannot be a PO Box;
  3. If the company does not occupy the premises it must have the written consent of the occupier.

Therefore, based on the above, it would appear that a company is permitted to use a virtual address as the registered office provided that it meets the criteria outlined above.

The principal place of business for a company is indeed a significant aspect of its registration and legal operations. According to ASIC, this address should be where the company primarily conducts its business activities and cannot be a PO Box. While a virtual address may serve as a registered office address, it is generally not adequate for a principal place of business because it does not support the physical presence typically required to demonstrate the main business activities. Therefore, companies should ensure that their principal place of business address accurately reflects where they conduct their primary operations.