table of contents
Can you register your business with a PO box, or do you need a street address for business? The short answer: a PO box works for some addresses ASIC and the ABR ask for, but not the important ones. Your company’s registered office, your principal place of business and your ABN’s main business address all need a physical street address.
This guide sets out exactly which addresses accept a PO box, which need a street address, and how a PO box, mail redirection and a virtual office differ.
What ASIC and the ABR Accept: The Quick Answer
Each register asks for more than one address, and the rules differ for each. Here is how they compare, based on ASIC and ABR guidance checked in October 2026.
| Address | Street address needed? | PO box OK? | Shown publicly? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Company registered office | Yes, a physical street address in Australia | No | Yes, to people who buy information from the companies register |
| Company principal place of business | Yes, a physical address | No | Yes, on a register search |
| Company contact address (optional) | No | Yes | Used for ASIC correspondence |
| Business name: service of documents | No | Yes | Yes |
| Business name: principal place of business | Yes, a physical street address | No | Yes, but only suburb, state and postcode for an individual working from home |
| ABN main business address | Yes, a physical street address | No | Only state and postcode on ABN Lookup |
| ABN postal address | No | Yes | Used for ABR communications |
Sources: ASIC’s company addresses page, ASIC’s register a business name page, and the ABR’s check your main business address notice.
Why a Street Address for Business Matters
ASIC sends official notices and letters to your company’s registered office, so it must be a real place where post can be received. The ABR says it has found main business addresses listed as PO boxes or tax agent addresses, and that it needs “the physical street address of your business or organisation.”
A street address for business also has to be the right kind of address. There are two different jobs here.
The registered office can be somewhere else
ASIC says your registered office “does not have to be an address where your company conducts business.” Its example is your accountant’s office. If you use someone else’s premises, you must keep a record of the owner’s written consent, and state that the owner has consented when you give ASIC the address.
The principal place of business can’t
The principal place of business is “the main address where your company conducts business.” It must be where the business is really run. If you work from home, that is usually your home, and it shows on the companies register. Our guide to the principal place of business vs registered office explains the difference in more depth.
PO Box, Street Address, Mail Redirection or Virtual Office?
These four get mixed up a lot. They solve different problems.
PO box
A PO box is a locked box at a post office. It works as a postal or contact address, and as the service of documents address for a business name. As of October 2026, Australia Post lists a small PO box at $170 a year at standard locations ($267 at specified locations), plus a $27 establishment fee. Annual fees run from 1 April to 31 March. Australia Post’s PO Box Plus upgrade accepts up to 50 parcels a year from other carriers.
Street address
A physical address where mail can be delivered and documents served. It is what ASIC needs for a registered office and principal place of business, and what the ABR needs for your main business address.
Mail redirection
Australia Post’s mail redirection forwards mail from an address you are leaving to a new one, for periods of up to 1, 3, 6 or 12 months. It is useful when you move. It is not an address, so you can’t register anything with it.
Virtual office
Read more in what is a virtual office.
Which Should You Use?
- Sole trader working from home, no company: your home is your principal place of business. A PO box or a virtual business address can be your postal and service of documents address, and the public business names register only shows your suburb, state and postcode.
- Company that wants a professional registered office: a virtual office street address works, with the owner’s written consent. A PO box does not.
- Business that just moved: mail redirection catches stray post while you update every register.
- Business that receives couriers: a staffed street address accepts parcels and couriers. A standard PO box is limited for other carriers unless you upgrade.
Keep every address up to date
ASIC says you must keep your company’s registered office and principal place of business up to date when they change. If you move from a PO box to a street address, or from home to an office, update ASIC and the ABR, not just your website. Mail redirection can cover the gap while those changes go through.
What a Virtual Office Can’t Do
A virtual office address does not hide your home if your home is where the company actually conducts business. That home stays your principal place of business, and ASIC shows it on the register. The address also can’t be used as your Google Business Profile location, as Google does not allow virtual offices there. A business that visits customers should use a service-area profile with the address hidden.
If you are registering for the first time, our guides on how to register a business name in NSW and running a business from home cover the next steps.
A PO box is fine for post. For a registered office, a principal place of business or an ABN main business address, you need a street address for business that is real, consented to and accurate.
This is general information, not legal advice. Check your situation with ASIC, the ABR or your accountant.
Need a street address ASIC will accept?
Use our Hunters Hill address for your registered office, with mail and parcels handled, from $20/week + GST.
See virtual office plans or call 0424 953 774
