How to File Annual Accounts for a UK Company in 2027 and 2028

Every UK limited company must prepare annual accounts and file them at Companies House every year, whether it made a profit, a loss or did nothing at all. The accounts are published on the public register, where banks, customers, payment providers and credit agencies can see them. Filing late brings automatic penalties and, if it goes on long enough, can lead to the company being struck off. This guide explains how to file annual accounts step by step, including deadlines, size thresholds and the filing changes coming in.

This guide explains how to file annual accounts for a UK company in 2027 and 2028: when they're due, which type of accounts your company can file, what goes in them, how to file, the changes Companies House is bringing in, and how to avoid penalties.

This guide is general information, not accounting advice. Thresholds, filing options and fees change. Check Companies House guidance or speak to an accountant.

Annual accounts versus the CT600

UK companies file two different things each year, to two different bodies:

The same accounts are used for both, but the deadlines and penalties are separate. Our guide on how to file a CT600 explains the HMRC side.

Your accounting reference date

Every company has an accounting reference date (ARD): the date its financial year ends each year. It's set automatically as the last day of the month in which the company was incorporated, one year on. For example, a company incorporated on 14 June 2026 has an ARD of 30 June, and its first financial year ends on 30 June 2027.

You can change the ARD (shorten it, or extend it within limits) by filing a change with Companies House before the filing deadline for the period you want to change. Many companies align it with the tax year or a calendar quarter.

Filing deadlines

Example

A private company incorporated on 14 June 2026 has a first financial year ending 30 June 2027. Its first accounts are due by 14 March 2028 (21 months after incorporation). Its second accounts, for the year to 30 June 2028, are due by 31 March 2029.

Search your company to see its exact next accounts due date on the register.

Which accounts can your company file?

The type of accounts depends on the company's size. The size thresholds were raised for financial years beginning on or after 6 April 2025. A company qualifies for a size category if it meets at least two of the three conditions:

Some companies can't use the micro or small regimes regardless of size, for example certain financial services businesses and public companies. Check the Companies House guidance on accounts for exclusions.

Micro-entity accounts

Most very small companies file micro-entity accounts prepared under FRS 105. They're the simplest full accounts:

• a balance sheet with notes;
• limited disclosures; and
• no requirement to publish a profit and loss account under the current rules.

Small company accounts

Small companies prepare accounts under FRS 102 Section 1A. They include more detail than micro-entity accounts, and the filing options for small companies are changing (see below).

Dormant accounts

A company that had no significant accounting transactions during the year can file dormant accounts: a simple balance sheet and notes. See our guide to dormant company accounts and a nil CT600.

Medium and large companies

These file full accounts, often with a strategic report and a directors' report, and usually need an audit.

Audit exemption

Most small companies are exempt from audit, but they must include a statement on the balance sheet that the directors take advantage of the exemption and acknowledge their responsibilities. Shareholders holding at least 10% can still require an audit. Subsidiaries and some regulated companies have different rules.

Changes coming in: what's different for 2027 and 2028

The Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 is changing how accounts are filed. Companies House has announced several changes, phased in over time:

• Software filing: Companies House has said it plans to require accounts to be filed using commercial software, ending paper and its own web-based accounts filing. Check the current timetable on GOV.UK before your next filing.
• Fewer filing options for small companies: the option to file abridged accounts is being removed, and small companies and micro-entities are expected to file a profit and loss account as well as a balance sheet.
• Identity verification: directors must verify their identity with Companies House, and filings may be linked to verified identities. Our identity verification guide explains the rules.

If you've been filing accounts yourself through the Companies House website, plan now for how you'll file once software filing becomes mandatory: an accountant, a filing agent or your own accounting software.

What goes into annual accounts

At a minimum, accounts for a small private company include:

The accounts must be approved by the board and the balance sheet signed by a director, with their name printed.

How to file annual accounts

Option 1: through an accountant or filing agent

The most common route. Your accountant prepares the accounts in software and files them directly with Companies House, usually alongside the CT600 to HMRC. Our Filing Centre prepares and files micro-entity accounts and dormant accounts for small companies.

Option 2: using your own accounting software

Many accounting packages can produce statutory accounts and file them with Companies House and HMRC. You'll need the company's authentication code from Companies House.

Option 3: Companies House online services

Companies House has offered online filing for some types of accounts, but it's being phased out in favour of software filing. Check what's still available before relying on it.

What you need

• the company number and authentication code;
• the company's bookkeeping records for the year (bank statements, sales and purchase invoices);
• details of fixed assets, loans and amounts owed at the year end; and
• the directors' approval of the accounts.

Step-by-step

1. Check the deadline and the ARD on the register.
2. Close the books for the year: reconcile bank accounts and record all invoices.
3. Decide the size category using the thresholds.
4. Prepare the accounts in the correct format (micro, small, dormant).
5. Approve and sign the accounts at a board meeting.
6. File with Companies House before the deadline, using software or an agent.
7. File the CT600 with HMRC using the same accounts.
8. Check the register to confirm the accounts are accepted and the next due date has moved on.

Late filing penalties

Companies House charges penalties automatically when accounts are filed late. For a private company:

The penalty doubles if the accounts were also late the previous year. Public companies pay more. Penalties can only be appealed in limited circumstances; see our guide to avoiding late filing penalties. Persistently late accounts can lead to compulsory strike off.

Can you get more time?

You can apply to Companies House for an extension before the deadline if something genuinely outside your control prevents filing on time, such as serious illness, a fire or a cyber attack. Extensions aren't granted for routine reasons like an accountant's workload, and you must apply before the deadline passes.

Common mistakes

1. Missing the first accounts deadline, which is calculated from incorporation, not the year end.
2. Using the wrong size category, especially after the 2025 threshold changes.
3. Forgetting the audit exemption statement, so the accounts are rejected.
4. Accounts not signed or the director's name missing.
5. Leaving it to the last day, when rejections can push the filing past the deadline.
6. Assuming dormant means no filing. Dormant companies still file accounts.
7. Not planning for software filing as web filing is phased out.

Practical scenarios

A new company's first accounts

A company incorporated on 14 June 2026 made up its first accounts to 30 June 2027, filed micro-entity accounts in January 2028, well before the 14 March 2028 deadline, and filed its CT600 at the same time.

A small company affected by the threshold change

A growing company with £900,000 turnover, a £420,000 balance sheet and 8 employees became eligible for micro-entity accounts under the raised thresholds for its year beginning after 6 April 2025, simplifying its accounts.

A company that filed late two years running

A company filed accounts 2 months late one year (a £375 penalty) and 2 months late again the next year. Because it was late in consecutive years, the second penalty doubled to £750.

Starting or restructuring a company?

If you're forming a new company, it helps to choose a sensible accounting reference date and set up bookkeeping from day one. Biz E-Formations Inc. handles UK company formation, registered office services and help opening a business bank account, so your records are organised from the start.

Checklist

How to file annual accounts: choosing who prepares them

Whichever you choose, the directors remain legally responsible for the accounts being filed on time and being correct.

Micro-entity accounts in detail

Most small UK companies can use the micro-entity regime, which has the simplest presentation. Micro-entity accounts:

• use FRS 105, which doesn't allow assets to be revalued or certain items to be shown at fair value;
• include a balance sheet with prescribed headings;
• include a short set of notes, such as advances to directors and guarantees; and
• are presumed to give a true and fair view, provided they meet the legal requirements.

If your company has investments you'd like to show at market value, or you need more detailed accounts for lenders or investors, you may prefer small company accounts under FRS 102 Section 1A instead, even if you qualify as a micro-entity.

Group companies and holding companies

If your company is a parent of other companies, special rules apply:

• A small group may be exempt from preparing group (consolidated) accounts.
• Subsidiaries may qualify for audit or filing exemptions if the parent gives a guarantee.
• A company that's part of a larger group may not qualify as small, even if it's small on its own.

Take advice if your company owns shares in other companies, as the size tests can apply to the whole group.

Changing your accounting reference date

You might want to change the year end to:

• align with the tax year or a seasonal business cycle;
• match a parent company or other group companies; or
• give yourself more time for the first accounts.

You can shorten the period as often as you like. You can usually extend it only once every five years, and not beyond 18 months from the start of the period. File the change before the deadline for the period being changed has passed.

What happens after you file

1. Companies House checks the accounts. Rejected accounts are returned with a reason; you must fix and refile before the deadline.
2. Once accepted, the accounts appear on the public register, usually within a few days.
3. The company's next accounts due date moves forward a year.
4. File the CT600 with HMRC using the same accounts, if you haven't already.

Search your company to confirm the accounts are on the register and the next due date has changed. Company Monitor emails you every deadline in advance, so you never file late.

Common reasons accounts are rejected

Bookkeeping that makes year-end simple

Good accounts start with good records through the year. A short routine saves most of the work at year end:

1. Use a separate business bank account for every company payment and receipt.
2. Record sales invoices as you issue them and chase unpaid ones.
3. Keep receipts for every expense, digitally if possible.
4. Reconcile the bank monthly against your bookkeeping.
5. Log fixed asset purchases, such as computers and vehicles, separately.
6. Track the director's loan account: money the director takes out or puts in that isn't salary or dividends.
7. Note dividends with board minutes and dividend vouchers.

With these in place, your accountant can prepare the accounts and CT600 quickly, and you'll know your profit before the deadline rather than after it.

Dividends and the accounts

Dividends can only be paid out of distributable profits: broadly, accumulated profits that haven't already been paid out. Before paying a dividend, the directors should check management accounts show enough distributable reserves. Dividends paid without enough profits are unlawful, and shareholders who knew may have to repay them. The annual accounts show the reserves position at the year end, so they're the starting point for dividend decisions.

Filing accounts for a company you're closing

If you plan to close a solvent company with a DS01 strike off, you still need to bring filings up to date before applying, and you'll usually prepare final accounts to the date the company stopped trading. Our guide on how to close a UK company explains the order of steps, including dealing with any money left in the company.

Filing accounts after a company has been restored

If a dissolved company has been restored, it must file the accounts that were overdue at dissolution, plus any that fell due while it was dissolved, because a restored company is treated as having existed throughout. Expect several sets of accounts at once, and plan the work with your accountant.

Who can see your accounts

Accounts filed at Companies House are public. Anyone can view and download them free, including competitors, customers, suppliers, lenders and journalists. That's why the size regimes matter: smaller companies disclose less. Before you file, check what your chosen format will reveal, and remember that the changes being introduced for small companies are expected to require more information, such as a profit and loss account, to be published.

Search any company to see what its filed accounts show, and how long since it last filed.

Key takeaways

• Every UK company files annual accounts at Companies House, even if it is dormant.
• Private companies have 9 months from the year end; first accounts are due 21 months after incorporation.
• Check your size category against the thresholds that apply from April 2025.
• Include the audit exemption statement and get the balance sheet signed.
• Plan for software filing as Companies House phases out web and paper filing of accounts.
• Late filing penalties are automatic and double for repeat late filing.
• Use the same accounts for the CT600 you file with HMRC, so the two filings always match.

Before you start: a quick readiness check

Check the accounting reference date and deadline on the register, confirm which size category applies, make sure the bank accounts are reconciled to the year end, and agree who will sign the balance sheet. Doing this a month before the deadline leaves time to fix any rejection before penalties start.

Related guides

• How to file a CT600 Company Tax Return
• How to file dormant company accounts and a nil CT600
• How to avoid Companies House late filing penalties
• How to file a confirmation statement

The bottom line

File annual accounts at Companies House every year, within 9 months of the year end (21 months from incorporation for the first accounts). Check your size category against the 2025 thresholds, include the audit exemption statement, get the accounts signed, and file through software or an agent as Companies House moves away from web filing. Then file the CT600 with HMRC using the same accounts.