Welcome Changes Proposed for Officers of Irish Companies

For many years, officers of Irish companies have been raising legitimate concerns about personal privacy and security arising from the requirement to have their address publicly available. This obligation is often met with surprise by directors of international companies investing here, and it is clear that this obligation is out of step with other international business hubs such as the United Kingdom and Singapore. To remedy this issue, the Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment has proposed amendments to the Companies Act 2014 (the “Act”) to remove the requirement that the residential address of directors and secretaries of Irish companies is publicly available.

The current position is that a director or secretary of an Irish company must provide to the Registrar of Companies (the “Registrar”) their ‘usual residential address’, which is publicly accessible through searches of the online register.

To avoid this, an exemption may be sought where the circumstances concerning the personal safety or security of the officer warrant it. An application for exemption must be supported by a statement from a Chief Superintendent (or someone of superior rank) of An Garda Síochána (the Irish police) requesting that the ‘usual residential address’ shall not appear on the register for reasons of personal safety or security.

Whilst this exemption mechanism provides protection for officers facing genuine security threats, the requirement for a supporting statement from An Garda Síochána represents a high threshold that cannot be met by the vast majority of officers.

Proposed Changes

It is proposed that the existing exemption will be repealed and officers of Irish companies would have the option to provide a ‘contact address’ located within Ireland together with their ‘usual residential address’. The ‘contact address’ would be publicly available, while the ‘usual residential address’ would remain private except to certain entities prescribed by the Minister, such as An Garda Síochána, the Revenue Commissioners and various regulators.

It is not proposed that these changes have retrospective effect and as such current or former officers of Irish companies will still have their ‘usual residential address’ publicly available via previous filings with the Companies Registration Office. This aspect of the proposed changes drew criticism in the public consultation phase, most notably from the Law Society of Ireland, which submitted that redactions should be available upon application. It will be interesting to see whether this makes it into the draft amendments to the Act. 

Brendan O’Brien, Head of Corporate for Bird & Bird Ireland, said:

“These proposed changes are a welcome development for Irish company law, bringing Ireland in line with international best practice. The changes will provide important protection for officers and their families and will be of particular value for those who serve on multiple boards or in high-profile positions. With these changes, Ireland is underlining its support of corporate activity and respect for the privacy of those who conduct business through and within the jurisdiction. We expect these legislative proposals, once drafted and enacted, to be widely utilised.”

Further details of the legislative changes are expected later in 2026.