Virtual offices for contractors
A real UK business address and mail handling for limited company contractors and PSCs — without putting your home on invoices, banks or Companies House.
What is a virtual office?
It is a professional street address plus a mail service. You do not go there every day. You use it so your limited company has a proper business address, and so contracts, bank letters and invoices do not land on your doormat.
DeskMate
Contractor UK’s exclusive virtual office partner. An iconic London location and mail handling from £12.99 + VAT/month, with no setup fee and no long contract.
Why do contractors use a virtual office?
Usually it is about privacy, cost, and having an address banks will accept.
Keep your home off the paperwork
Invoices, bank forms and the public register do not need your front door on them. A virtual office replaces that address so personal and business post stay apart.
Skip the cost of a real office
If you only need an address and mail, a lease is wasted money. You can keep working from home or a laptop and still have a proper business address.
Give banks and HMRC somewhere real
A PO Box will not do. A real UK street address with mail handling usually will — check your bank if they have extra rules.
How a virtual office works for contractors
You pick a provider, decide how mail is handled, then use the address like any other business address.
Pick a provider
You need a real UK street address, mail handling, and no long lease.
Choose how mail is handled
- Scan to email
- Forward to you
- Hold on site
You can change this later.
Use it like a normal address
- Company registration
- Banks and HMRC
- Contracts and invoices
How is this different from your home address?
Home address
Business mail hits your front door. Your residential details show on Companies House, invoices and bank forms. Fine if you do not mind that. Awkward if you rent, move often, or just want privacy.
Virtual office
Mail goes to a real street address and is scanned, forwarded or held. Your home stays off the paperwork. You still have a legitimate UK business presence.
Registered office vs virtual office vs director’s service address
These are three different things. One address can cover all three if the package includes them.
Registered office
The company’s legal address on the public register. Companies House and HMRC write here. Real UK street address, same jurisdiction as the company. No PO Box. This is what most new PSCs need.
Director’s service address
The public address for you as a director. Use it to keep your home off the register. It can be the same building as the registered office. Changing one does not change the other.
Virtual office / trading address
Invoices, website, banks, client contracts, plus mail that is not statutory. A registered-office-only service will not scan your bank letters. A virtual office will.
Guide for your new business
Iconic London Location
DeskMate’s ContractorUK address is London Olympic Park. It gives you a London letterhead and mail handling from £12.99 + VAT/month.
How mail is handled
Scan if you want a paper trail in your inbox. Forward if you still want the envelopes. Hold if you collect. Official deadlines still sit with you.
When not to use it
Fine for registration, invoices and most platforms. Some banks still want extra proof of who you are. Do not promise a walk-in office if you only bought an address.
FAQs for contractors
Yes, in most cases. DeskMate addresses are real UK street addresses with mail handling. Many banks and HMRC accept them for limited‑company registration and business banking. Check your bank if they have extra rules.
Yes. There is no long‑term contract, so you can update or cancel your London Olympic Park virtual office if your business changes.
You choose how your mail is handled:
- Scan to email – perfect if you want a digital record of everything.
- Forward – useful if you prefer to handle physical mail yourself.
- Hold on site – good if you want to keep things secure and access them when you need to.
You can change how mail is handled as your business needs change.
No. A DeskMate virtual office is about address and mail, not physical space. You can keep working from home, a café, or a co‑working space, and still use a professional DeskMate address.
No. A virtual office is commonly used by one‑person limited companies and new PSCs, not just larger firms.
Usually yes, if it is a real UK street address with mail handling — not a PO Box. DeskMate addresses are physical offices. HMRC will write to the registered office you file, so someone has to receive that post. Always check your bank or payment platform if they have extra rules.
Yes. A virtual office is a real street address you are allowed to use. Companies House will not accept a PO Box as a registered office. The address must be able to receive official mail. Providers of business address services also have to run ID checks.
Yes. You can use a DeskMate address as your Companies House registered office and as a director’s service address, as well as on invoices and your website. Confirm the package includes registered office use before you file the change.
London Olympic Park
London Olympic Park starts from £12.99 + VAT/month. That is DeskMate’s iconic London location for ContractorUK.
No. You do not need to visit. You can live anywhere in the UK and use the London Olympic Park address on invoices, banks and Companies House. Mail is scanned, forwarded or held.
Yes, if the package includes registered office use. The London Olympic Park address is a real UK street address. Confirm before you change Companies House.
Not for Companies House. Sole traders do not need a registered office. A virtual address is optional if you want invoices and client mail kept off your home. If you later form a limited company or PSC, the same DeskMate address can become your registered office.
Ready to set up a virtual office?
A DeskMate address gives you a real UK business address and mail handling, without renting an office.
Start your DeskMate virtual office today →Updated October 2026