A security business can supply guarding, door supervision, alarm or CCTV installation, locksmith work, investigation or other specialist services. Forming an Irish LTD creates the legal entity, but it does not authorise regulated work. The service category determines the Private Security Authority licence, technical standard, staffing and evidence the business needs.
This guide connects company formation with the PSA contractor-licence process and the operating controls customers expect. It is general information, not legal, licensing or security advice. Check the live PSA requirements for the exact service before buying equipment, hiring staff or accepting a contract.
Incorporation and licensing are separate
The CRO can incorporate the LTD before the PSA decides its licence application. Do not advertise or provide a licensable security service as though approval were complete: the PSA states that providing security services without a licence is an offence.
Choose the exact security sector first
The PSA regulates defined activities rather than businesses that merely use the word “security”. Its contractor sectors include door supervision, security guarding, private investigation, locksmith services, security consulting, enforcement guarding, protected transport, security-equipment installation and safe supply or installation. Equipment installation is divided into areas such as CCTV, access control and intruder alarms.
Write a precise service list and match each activity to the PSA category. A company that guards premises and installs CCTV may need more than one licensed sector and more than one applicable standard. Avoid promising services that fall outside the licence eventually granted.
Form the Irish limited company
The company name should not imply State approval or a qualification it does not possess. A foreign founder can generally own shares, but director-residence rules and PSA vetting remain separate. Review our company-formation document checklist before filing.
- Choose an acceptable company name and prepare an LTD constitution.
- Provide a physical registered office address in Ireland.
- Appoint at least one director aged 18 or older and a company secretary.
- Use a separate secretary where the LTD has only one director.
- Have an EEA-resident director or an available statutory alternative.
- Record shareholders, initial shares and beneficial owners accurately.
- Complete the PPSN or applicable CRO identity-verification and IPN route.
- Describe the real security activity accurately in Form A1.
Prepare the PSA contractor application
The PSA's first contractor-licence guidance lists the application form, prescribed fee, valid tax-clearance evidence, company documents, vetting and standards evidence. A limited company must provide a Certificate of Incorporation dated not more than four weeks before the application is lodged.
Existing applicants may need accountant or auditor turnover confirmation, while the PSA states that this is not required for a newly incorporated company. The correct standard depends on the sector. Some specialist applicants must establish competence before certification and application, so follow the sector information pack rather than a generic checklist.
Plan for vetting and foreign records
For a first limited-company application, the PSA sends Garda e-vetting links for directors, the company secretary and shareholders holding 5% or more. The disclosure is assessed as part of the PSA fit-and-proper process. Ownership should therefore be settled and recorded consistently before the application.
The PSA also requires foreign criminal-record certificates from relevant company officers and 5% shareholders who spent six months or more in a foreign jurisdiction during the previous 15 years, subject to its age-related rule. These records can take time, so identify countries and issuing authorities early.
Licence workers for the work they perform
The contractor licence belongs to the business. Individuals performing regulated work generally need the corresponding employee licence and required training. Verify licences before rostering, keep renewal dates, and do not move a worker into a different regulated function merely because the company holds that sector.
Register as an employer before paying staff and report payroll to Revenue on or before payment. Use written employment terms, lawful scheduling, working-time controls, incident reporting and role-specific training. A uniform and company ID do not replace a PSA identity card.
Contracts, insurance and operational controls
A client contract should define the site, hours, duties, exclusions, staffing, escalation, keys, alarm response, data handling, incident records, price, payment and termination. Technology contracts should identify equipment ownership, monitoring, maintenance, cybersecurity, retention and customer responsibilities.
Discuss public liability, employers' liability, professional indemnity, vehicles, equipment and fidelity risks with a broker familiar with the licensed sector. Build assignment instructions, supervision, lone-working, key control, complaints and emergency procedures before the first shift.
Tax, VAT and cash-flow setup
Register the company for relevant Revenue taxes when it begins trading. Revenue currently lists a EUR42,500 VAT threshold for services-only businesses, subject to the detailed rules; voluntary registration, equipment sales and cross-border transactions can change the analysis. Do not quote a VAT-inclusive long-term contract until the treatment is understood.
Security contracts are labour intensive. Price wages, employer costs, leave cover, training, licence renewals, uniforms, supervision, insurance, equipment and unsocial hours rather than multiplying the hourly wage by the roster. Keep company banking, payroll, customer receipts and director spending separate.
Security-company launch checklist
StartCompany.ie can prepare the Irish LTD while the PSA and approved specialists handle licensing and standards. Compare formation packages or tell us the proposed directors and security sector to identify the appropriate formation route.
- Define every security activity and match it to a PSA contractor sector.
- Choose the name, ownership, directors, secretary and Irish registered office.
- Incorporate the LTD and obtain recent company documents for licensing.
- Prepare tax clearance, vetting, foreign records and applicable standards.
- Apply for the PSA contractor licence and wait for approval before trading.
- Verify individual employee licences and register payroll.
- Arrange sector-appropriate insurance, contracts and operating procedures.
- Register applicable taxes, build bookkeeping and diary all renewals.