Welcome to China street: The fraudulent businesses taking over UK homes creating a huge… [Video]

27 November 2024, 12:50 | Updated: 27 November 2024, 13:03

Bogus online businesses could be cheating the exchequer of ‘hundreds of millions’ of pounds in tax, LBC has learned, with MPs calling on Companies House to do more following our findings.

Figures seen by LBC show 30,000 Chinese companies have registered to a UK address so far this year – with a significant number believed to be fraudulent.

Registering an address for a new company in the UK is simple. It doesn’t require any proof of residency or connection to the property being registered.

The entire process through Companies House can take less than 24 hours and comes at a cost of £50 – recently increased from £12 in May – a system that is being exploited.

Read more: Matthew Wright ‘crushed’ by £19k fraud as he reveals how scammers tricked …