Understanding Companies House Filing Deadlines and Penalties

Companies House maintains the official register of UK companies, and every active company must file two recurring returns: a confirmation statement (formerly the annual return) and annual accounts. Missing the deadlines triggers automatic penalties, and persistent lateness can lead to the company being struck off and its directors prosecuted. This guide explains the deadlines, the escalating penalty regime, and how to monitor both your own company and the suppliers you depend on.

The two recurring filings every company must make

The confirmation statement is a snapshot of key company information — registered office, directors, shareholders, share capital and the people with significant control (PSC register). It is filed at least once every 12 months, within a 14-day window either side of the "made up to" date. There is no financial penalty for a late confirmation statement, but failing to file is a criminal offence and Companies House will eventually strike the company off.

The annual accounts are the financial statements filed each year. For a private company, accounts are normally due 9 months after the accounting reference date (ARD); for a public company, 6 months after the ARD. The first accounts of a new private company are due 21 months after incorporation, longer than later years to give start-ups time to establish a cycle.

How the accounting reference date works

Every company has an accounting reference date, usually the last day of the month in which it was incorporated. A company incorporated on 14 March has an ARD of 31 March, so its first period ends the following 31 March and accounts are due nine months later, on 31 December. You can change the ARD by filing a form, but you cannot make the period longer than 18 months without special reasons. Knowing a company's ARD is the key to predicting when its accounts next fall due.

The accounts late-filing penalty ladder

Filing accounts late triggers an automatically escalating penalty, charged in addition to the duty to file. The scale for private companies is:

• Up to 1 month late: £150
• More than 1 month, up to 3 months: £375
• More than 3 months, up to 6 months: £750
• More than 6 months late: £1,500

A second consecutive year of late filing doubles the penalty — two months late two years running means £375 then £750. Appeals are accepted only for circumstances outside the company's control, such as a fire at the registered office or serious illness of the sole director; being busy is not grounds for appeal.

What "dissolved for non-filing" means

If a company consistently fails to file its confirmation statement or accounts, Companies House can begin strike-off proceedings: a formal notice, a Gazette notice, then dissolution — at which point the company ceases to exist, its assets pass to the Crown as bona vacantia, and any contracts it held are effectively ended. For a supplier, a dissolved company cannot invoice you validly or fulfil orders; for your own business, dissolution is catastrophic because you lose limited liability protection and bank accounts are typically frozen.

How to monitor deadlines for your own company

Diarise both the ARD and the resulting accounts deadline at incorporation, with reminders at 30, 14 and 7 days. Filing early is always possible — you do not have to wait. Register for Companies House email reminders, which are free and cover accounts and confirmation statements. Set reminders to two or three people (director, accountant, company secretary) so a single inbox outage does not cause a missed deadline.

Why monitoring your suppliers' deadlines matters

A supplier that files late, or has been threatened with strike-off, is a material operational and credit risk. A company that cannot keep its own filings in order is more likely to fail to deliver, become insolvent, or disappear mid-contract. Before placing a large order or extending credit, look the supplier up and check three things: the company status (active, dissolved, in liquidation), the next accounts due date, and the confirmation statement due date. A supplier whose accounts are six months overdue and whose status shows "active — proposal to strike off" is a company you should not extend credit to. A monitoring tool that flags an approaching deadline, or alerts you the moment a status changes, gives weeks of warning to find an alternative supplier before a disruption hits.

A filing calendar that works

The companies that never incur a penalty treat filing as a scheduled event, not a deadline: map every obligation to a date, assign an owner, file early, and keep a record. The same calendar applied to your key suppliers becomes a lightweight credit-control system that catches deterioration long before it appears in a payment default.