How to ensure you meet Companies House filing deadlines

The moment your private limited company is registered, you will be set two Companies House filing deadlines. One for your annual accounts and one for the confirmation statement. Missing these deadlines can be costly to your company’s pocket and reputation, and could even result in your company being closed down.

Here, we’ll show you two quick and simple ways that you can ensure you never miss a Companies House deadline. Let’s get started.

Use your Online Client Portal

1. Switch on reminders

If your limited company is on our Online Client Portal, you can receive email updates as and when the due dates for your annual accounts and confirmation statement approach.

You can then act accordingly to make sure that the appropriate filing is delivered on time to Companies House, saving you from a hefty penalty (in the case of the annual accounts) or the threat of your company being struck off and you facing criminal prosecution (in the case of the confirmation statement).

If no action is taken (i.e. you fail to file annual accounts or a confirmation statement), you will receive another set of emails, this time notifying you that the due date has passed – giving you the opportunity to react swiftly and make the necessary filing.

To switch your email reminders on:

Log in to your Rapid Formations Online Client Portal
Select ‘My Details’
Scroll down to ‘Notifications’
Tick the ‘I would like to receive updates on the confirmation statement’ box
Tick the ‘I would like to receive updates on my accounts’ box
Select ‘Update Details’

The reminders will then be sent to your ‘Primary’ email address from info@rapidformations.co.uk. If you have multiple companies stored within the Online Client Portal, you will receive email updates for each and every company.

Whilst not recommended, if you wish to turn the updates off, simply follow the steps above, and untick the necessary boxes, being sure to confirm by selecting ‘Update Details’.

2. Check filing due dates

As well as receiving email alerts as the due dates approach, you can also use the Online Client Portal to check the dates, as and when you need.

To do this:

Log in to your Rapid Formations Online Client Portal
Select ‘My Companies’
Click on your company name
See the ‘Company Accounts’ section for the annual accounts due date
See the ‘Company Particulars’ section for the confirmation statement due date

If your company was not formed by Rapid Formations

Anyone who forms their limited company with Rapid Formations gets instant access to the Online Client Portal.

However, if your company was formed directly with Companies House or an alternative company formation agent, you can still use the Online Client Portal for free.

To sign up and import a limited company:

Visit our Online Client Portal page
Select ‘Create an account’
Provide your name, phone number, email address, password and address
Agree to our terms and conditions and select ‘Submit Registration’
Select ‘Import a Company’
Enter the company number and authentication code of the company you want on the system
Select ‘Search’
Confirm that you wish to import the company

The company will then be added to the Online Client Portal, and you’ll be able to sign up for the email updates (and check the due dates) as outlined above.

The repercussions of missing a Companies House deadline

If you fail to meet the deadline for your annual accounts, when you do eventually file these you will incur a late filing penalty. The total of this penalty depends on how late you are:

How late?	Penalty for a private limited company
Less than 1 month	£150
More than 1 month – less than 3 months	£375
More than 3 months – less than 6 months	£750
More than 6 months	£1,500

If the annual accounts are filed late two financial years in a row, the penalty is doubled.

Because the fine is only put in place when the accounts are delivered, some business owners decide to dissolve (close) their company, rather than file late accounts.

If you fail to meet the deadline for your confirmation statement, whilst there’s no penalty for late filing, Companies House will notify you that you are breaking the law and urge you to file a confirmation statement as soon as possible. If you fail to act on their repeated warnings, Companies House can close your company down and a court may issue you with a fine of up to £5,000.

If you file either your annual accounts or confirmation statement after the deadline, this will show on the Companies House public register – which could cause reputational damage to your company. As well as this, late filing can also have a negative impact on your company’s credit score.

Other ways we can help

As well as helping you keep track of your Companies House deadlines, we can also help you with your filing responsibilities.

Annual accounts

If your company has had no significant financial transactions, you can file a set of abbreviated accounts known as dormant company accounts. With our Dormant Company Accounts Service, available for only £59.99, our team of company experts can take care of everything required to file these with Companies House.

Alternatively, if your company is trading, we strongly recommend that you enlist the services of an accountant to ensure your accounts are delivered correctly.

Confirmation statement

Take the hassle out of filing your company’s confirmation statement and let our experts do it for you with our Confirmation Statement Service, available for £59.99 with our Standard Service and £69.99 with our Express Service.

Dissolutions

Finally, if either of your deadlines have slipped, and you’d rather close the company than take care of the necessary filing(s), our team can assist you in doing this with our Company Dissolution Service, available for £89.99.