Companies House Filing in 2026: Confirmation Statements, Accounts and Deadlines

Every UK limited company has two recurring jobs at Companies House: a confirmation statement at least once a year and annual accounts after each financial year. Miss either and the consequences escalate quickly, from automatic fines to prosecution and, eventually, the company being struck off the register. This guide covers both filings in 2026: the £50 confirmation statement and its 14-day window, how accounts deadlines are worked out (including the long first-year deadline), the late filing penalty table, the identity verification rules that now apply to directors and people with significant control, and the move to software-only accounts filing, which has been put back to 1 April 2028. It finishes with a dated calendar for a company set up this year.

Quick answer

Companies House filing means two things. File a confirmation statement at least every 12 months, within 14 days of the end of the review period (£50 online). File annual accounts within 9 months of your financial year end (first accounts: 21 months after incorporation). Late accounts cost £150 to £1,500, doubled if late two years running.

• Directors must verify their identity; existing directors confirm it with the next confirmation statement

• Software-only accounts filing starts 1 April 2028 (moved from April 2027)

• There's no fee to file accounts; changes like new directors are reported as they happen

• Your company's page on the register shows your exact due dates

What you have to file at Companies House

Companies House is the registrar for UK companies and LLPs. Its register is public, so what you file is what customers, lenders and suppliers see when they look you up. The two filings every company makes are:

1. The confirmation statement (form CS01). It confirms the information on the register is correct: registered office, registered email address, directors, people with significant control (PSCs), shareholders, share capital and the business activity code. It isn't a tax return and has no financial figures.
2. Annual accounts. A set of statutory accounts for each financial year, prepared under the Companies Act. How much detail you file depends on the company's size, and that's changing in 2028.

Separately, you must report most changes when they happen, not just once a year. That includes a new or departing director (within 14 days), a change of registered office, a new PSC, and new share allotments. These "event-driven" filings are free online and keep the register accurate between confirmation statements.

Don't confuse Companies House filings with HMRC filings. The Company Tax Return (CT600) and Corporation Tax payments go to HMRC on their own deadlines. The joint HMRC and Companies House online service that small companies used to file both at once closed on 31 March 2026, so tax returns now go through commercial software and accounts go to Companies House separately. Our Corporation Tax guide covers the HMRC side.

The confirmation statement: dates, fee and what you confirm

You must file at least one confirmation statement every 12 months. The first review period runs for 12 months from incorporation, and each one after that runs for 12 months from the date of the last statement. You then have 14 days after the end of the review period to file. You must file even if nothing has changed.

The fee is £50 online or through software and £110 on paper. It's charged once per review period, so a second statement filed in the same 12 months to record an update is free. The confirmation statement fee was £34 until the fee changes of February 2026; the current figures come from the fees page Companies House updated on 25 September 2026.

When you file, you confirm or update the items below. The registered office must be an "appropriate address" where documents will come to someone's attention, so a PO box alone isn't enough. The registered email address is used for official messages and isn't published.

What a confirmation statement covers

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• Registered office address (an appropriate address, not just a PO box)
• Registered email address (not published)
• Directors, company secretary (if any) and people with significant control
• Shareholders, statement of capital and SIC code, where changed
• A statement that the company's intended future activities are lawful
• During the transition: that every director has verified their identity

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Changes to officers and PSCs should already have been reported separately; the statement is your annual check that nothing has been missed.

You can file early. If you do, the date you file becomes your new confirmation statement date and the next review period starts the day after. Some companies use this to line up the confirmation statement with their year end.

What happens if you don't file? It's an offence for the company and every officer, with a fine of up to £5,000. Companies House also treats a missing confirmation statement as a sign the company may no longer be operating and can start striking it off. If the company is dissolved, its bank accounts are frozen and anything it owns passes to the Crown.

Annual accounts deadlines, including your first accounts

Every company has an accounting reference date (ARD): the date its financial year ends. When you incorporate, Companies House sets it automatically as the last day of the month in which the first anniversary of incorporation falls. A company incorporated on 14 March 2026 gets an ARD of 31 March, so its first financial year runs to 31 March 2027.

Accounts filing deadlines

Accounts	Private company	Public company
First accounts	21 months after incorporation, or 3 months after the ARD if later	18 months after incorporation, or 3 months after the ARD if later
Every later year	9 months after the ARD	6 months after the ARD

First accounts

Private company

21 months after incorporation, or 3 months after the ARD if later

Public company

18 months after incorporation, or 3 months after the ARD if later

Every later year

Private company

9 months after the ARD

Public company

6 months after the ARD

Because the first period can be longer than 12 months, first accounts get a longer deadline. Companies House's own example: a private company incorporated on 1 January 2025 with an ARD of 31 January has until 1 October 2026 to file its first accounts.

You can change your ARD by filing form AA01 before the deadline for the period concerned. Once accounts are overdue it's too late. You can lengthen a period once every five years (to a maximum of 18 months) and shorten it more often, though the 2028 reforms will require a business reason to shorten more than once in five years. If something genuinely unexpected stops you filing, such as a fire or a serious illness, you can apply for an extension. You must apply before the deadline, and Companies House decides case by case.

What goes in the accounts today

What you file depends on size. For accounting periods starting on or after 6 April 2025, the thresholds rose. A company is a micro-entity if it meets two of: turnover up to £1 million, balance sheet total up to £500,000, and no more than 10 employees on average. It's small if it meets two of: turnover up to £15 million, balance sheet up to £7.5 million, and no more than 50 employees.

Until the reforms take effect, micro-entities can file just a simple balance sheet, and small companies can choose not to file their profit and loss account or directors' report ("filleted" accounts) or file abridged accounts. Most small and micro companies can also claim audit exemption. Dormant companies still file accounts, with the same deadline and the same penalties as trading companies.

Late filing penalties for accounts

The penalty is automatic. It's based on how late the accounts arrive, and nothing you say about the reason stops the notice being issued.

Public companies pay more: from £750 to £7,500. On top of the civil penalty, failing to file accounts is a criminal offence for the directors, and Companies House can begin striking the company off.

Example. A small consultancy's accounts for the year to 30 June 2025 were due on 31 March 2026. The director filed on 20 May 2026, about seven weeks late, so the penalty was £375. If the accounts for the year to 30 June 2026 are also late, any penalty for that year doubles: filing in the same seven-week window would cost £750.

You can appeal, but only for circumstances outside your control, explained with specific dates. Companies House says appeals usually fail if the reason is that it was your first accounts, the company is dormant, you can't afford to pay, another director was responsible, your accountant let you down, or you didn't know the deadline. If an appeal is rejected you can escalate to a senior casework manager, then an independent adjudicator. Companies House won't collect the penalty while it considers an appeal.

Identity verification for directors and PSCs

The Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 gave Companies House new powers, and the biggest change for small companies is identity verification. It became a legal requirement on 18 November 2025.

Who must verify, and when

Who	When they verify
New directors	Before they're appointed (since 18 November 2025)
Existing directors	Confirmed in the company's next confirmation statement, during the 12-month transition
PSC who is also a director	Within 14 days starting the day after the confirmation statement date
PSC who isn't a director	Within the first 14 days of their birth month
New PSC	Within 14 days of the direction letter from Companies House
People who file (presenters)	Not yet: no earlier than November 2027, with at least six months' notice

New directors

When they verify

Before they're appointed (since 18 November 2025)

Existing directors

When they verify

Confirmed in the company's next confirmation statement, during the 12-month transition

PSC who is also a director

When they verify

Within 14 days starting the day after the confirmation statement date

PSC who isn't a director

When they verify

Within the first 14 days of their birth month

New PSC

When they verify

Within 14 days of the direction letter from Companies House

People who file (presenters)

When they verify

Not yet: no earlier than November 2027, with at least six months' notice

You verify once, either online through GOV.UK One Login using photo ID such as a biometric passport or UK driving licence, or through an Authorised Corporate Service Provider such as an accountant. There's also a Post Office option for people who can't complete the app route. You then get a personal code that links your verified identity to each role you hold. A director who is also a PSC gives the code for each role. Companies House doesn't charge for verification, though an agent may charge for doing it for you.

This is being enforced. On 16 September 2026 three directors were convicted at City of London Magistrates' Court of acting while unverified, alongside late confirmation statement offences. The fines were modest, but the convictions are on record. Unverified directors also block filings: Companies House won't accept a confirmation statement that can't confirm their verification.

How to file a confirmation statement online

1. 1

   Check the register first

   Look up your company on the Companies House register and note the confirmation statement date, the due date and the current officers and PSCs.

   Search the register
2. 2

   Make sure everyone is verified

   Collect each director's personal code. Anyone who hasn't verified should do it through GOV.UK One Login before you start.

   Tip: Verification can take minutes online, or longer through the Post Office or an agent.

3. 3

   File any pending changes

   Report new or departing directors, address changes and PSC changes first, as separate free filings.

4. 4

   Complete and pay

   Sign in with the company's authentication code, confirm or update the details, make the lawful purpose statement and pay £50.

5. 5

   Keep the acceptance email

   Companies House emails you when the filing is accepted. Check the register shows the new next-due date.

Software-only accounts filing and the other 2028 changes

The same 2023 Act lets Companies House require every set of accounts to be filed digitally through software. The original plan was to start this on 1 April 2027. On 9 June 2026 Companies House announced that the accounts reforms would move to April 2028, giving companies 21 months' notice. From 1 April 2028:

• All accounts, including dormant company accounts, must be filed in iXBRL format using commercial software. The web and paper routes close for accounts. Confirmation statements and other filings stay on the web service.
• Small companies and micro-entities must file a profit and loss account. They'll be able to opt out of having it published on the public register; Companies House says it will confirm how the opt-out works later.
• Small companies can no longer prepare or file abridged accounts.
• Companies claiming audit exemption must include a strengthened statement naming the exemption and confirming they qualify.
• All parts of the accounts must be filed together.
• Shortening the accounting reference period more than once in five years will need a business reason.

If you currently file micro-entity accounts yourself through the Companies House web form, budget time and a small software cost before 2028. Many bookkeeping packages already produce iXBRL accounts, and some free and low-cost options exist for very small companies. If you use an accountant, ask how they'll handle the change and whether your fee will change.

Worked calendar: a company incorporated on 14 March 2026

Here's how the first two years look for a private company incorporated on 14 March 2026 that starts trading straight away and keeps the default ARD of 31 March. Companies House counts the confirmation statement review period as 12 months from incorporation, so the register will show the statement date as 13 March 2027. Always check the dates on your own company page, as they're what Companies House enforces.

First two years of filings (private company)

14 March 2026

Incorporated; all directors verified before appointment

By 14 June 2026

Register for Corporation Tax with HMRC (within 3 months of starting to trade)

27 March 2027

First confirmation statement due (review period to 13 March 2027), fee £50

31 March 2027

First financial year ends (ARD)

14 December 2027

First accounts due at Companies House (21 months after incorporation); Corporation Tax due for the period to 13 March 2027

1 January 2028

Corporation Tax due for the short period 14 to 31 March 2027

13 March 2028

Company Tax Return due for the period to 13 March 2027

27 March 2028

Second confirmation statement due

31 March 2028

Company Tax Return due for the period to 31 March 2027

31 December 2028

Accounts for year to 31 March 2028 due, filed by software

Two things in this calendar trip people up. First, the company's first financial year is just over 12 months long (14 March 2026 to 31 March 2027), but a Corporation Tax accounting period can't be longer than 12 months. So HMRC sees two periods: 14 March 2026 to 13 March 2027, and 14 to 31 March 2027. Each has its own payment date (9 months and 1 day after the end of the accounting period) and its own return (12 months after the end of the accounting period). Second, the second year's accounts for the year to 31 March 2028 are due on 31 December 2028, after the 1 April 2028 switch, so they must go through software.

To avoid the most common mistake, a long first-year deadline that everyone forgets, put every date in a shared calendar on the day you incorporate. Sign up for Companies House email reminders, and make sure the registered email address goes to someone who reads it.

Common mistakes and how to fix them

• Assuming your accountant files the confirmation statement. Many don't unless it's in their engagement letter. Check who's responsible.
• Leaving verification to the last minute. A director who can't verify blocks the confirmation statement, which can then go late. Verify as soon as possible and store everyone's personal codes.
• Filing the wrong accounts type. Claiming micro-entity status when you don't meet two of the three tests leads to rejection. Check the thresholds for the period you're filing.
• Rejected filings. Companies House rejects accounts with missing signatures, the wrong period dates or a missing audit exemption statement. A rejection doesn't stop the clock, so file early enough to fix and resubmit before the deadline.
• Ignoring the registered office post. Penalty notices, strike-off warnings and HMRC letters go there. If you use a formation agent's address, make sure mail is forwarded promptly.
• Using lookalike sites. Third-party sites sometimes send official-looking invoices for "registration" or "renewal" services. The only fees you pay Companies House are on GOV.UK, through WebFiling or your software.

Official links

• File your confirmation statementOnline filing and paper form CS01
• Confirmation statement guidanceReview periods, what to confirm, filing early
• File your company's annual accountsCompanies House online accounts filing
• Late filing penalties and appealsPenalty bands and how to appeal
• Verify your identity for Companies HouseGOV.UK One Login, ACSPs and personal codes
• Accounts filing changes from April 2028Software-only filing and P&L requirement
• Companies House feesCurrent fee list

What to do next

Look up your company on the register today and note the next confirmation statement and accounts dates. If any director hasn't verified their identity, sort that out first. Setting up a new company? Our limited company set-up guide covers incorporation, and the business bank account guide explains how to keep company money separate from the start. If the company has stopped trading, our guide to closing a limited company explains how to strike it off properly instead of letting filings lapse. Use the budget planner to set aside money for accountancy fees and Corporation Tax.

This is general information, not legal or tax advice — confirm on the official source or with a professional.

Frequently asked questions

How much does a confirmation statement cost in 2026?

£50 if you file online or through software, or £110 on paper. You pay once for each 12-month review period; filing extra statements in the same period to record changes costs nothing. There's no fee for filing annual accounts.

When are my first accounts due at Companies House?

A private company's first accounts are due 21 months after incorporation, or 3 months after the accounting reference date if that's later. After that, accounts are due 9 months after the end of each financial year. Your exact dates are shown on your company's page on the Companies House register.

What is the penalty for filing accounts late?

For a private company it's £150 if accounts are up to a month late, rising to £375, £750 and £1,500 for more than six months. The penalty doubles if accounts are late two years running. Directors can also be prosecuted, and the company can be struck off.

Do I still need to file a confirmation statement if nothing has changed?

Yes. You must file at least one every 12 months even if nothing changed. It confirms that the register is correct, that the company's intended activities are lawful and, during the identity verification transition, that directors have verified their identity. Not filing is an offence with a fine of up to £5,000.

When does software-only accounts filing start?

On 1 April 2028. Companies House announced on 9 June 2026 that the accounts reforms planned for April 2027 have moved back a year. From that date all accounts must be filed in iXBRL using commercial software, abridged accounts end, and small and micro companies must file a profit and loss account.

Do existing directors need to verify their identity with Companies House?

Yes. Identity verification became a legal requirement on 18 November 2025. New directors must verify before they're appointed. Existing directors confirm they've verified when the company files its next confirmation statement, during a 12-month transition. Acting as an unverified director is an offence, and the first prosecutions took place in September 2026.

Sources & verification

Figures on this page were checked against the sources below when it was last reviewed on 8 October 2026. Each rate and limit is stored once with its own official source and review date, and official update channels are monitored daily so changes are picked up. How we verify

1. 1.Confirmation statement guidance — Companies House / GOV.UK · accessed 8 October 2026
2. 2.Companies House fees — Companies House / GOV.UK · accessed 8 October 2026
3. 3.Preparing and filing Companies House accounts (Life of a company part 1) — Companies House / GOV.UK · accessed 8 October 2026
4. 4.Annual accounts: penalties for late filing — Companies House / GOV.UK · accessed 8 October 2026
5. 5.Companies House to bring in changes to accounts filing from April 2028 — Companies House / GOV.UK · accessed 8 October 2026
6. 6.Changes to accounts — Changes to UK company law — Companies House · accessed 8 October 2026
7. 7.Verify your identity for Companies House — Companies House / GOV.UK · accessed 8 October 2026
8. 8.Identity verification — Changes to UK company law — Companies House · accessed 8 October 2026
9. 9.Understanding identity verification for people with significant control (PSCs) — Companies House blog · accessed 8 October 2026
10. 10.Directors warned to verify identities with Companies House following first Insolvency Service prosecutions — Insolvency Service / GOV.UK · accessed 8 October 2026
11. 11.The online accounts and Company Tax Return service is closing — Companies House / HMRC · accessed 8 October 2026
12. 12.File your company's annual accounts with Companies House — GOV.UK · accessed 8 October 2026