Posted December 9, 2025

Companies House and HMRC: Year-End Compliance Checklist

Running a limited company comes with significant responsibilities, and nowhere is this more apparent than when year-end arrives. Between Companies House filings, HMRC returns, and internal documentation requirements, it’s easy for even the most organized director to feel overwhelmed.

Missing deadlines can result in automatic penalties, reputational damage, and unwanted scrutiny from regulators. Yet with proper planning and a clear checklist, year-end compliance needn’t be a source of stress.

This guide walks you through the essential compliance tasks every limited company must complete, helping you stay on the right side of both Companies House and HMRC.

Understanding Your Key Deadlines

Before diving into specific requirements, it’s crucial to understand the different deadlines that apply to your company. These aren’t the same for every business, and confusion between them is a common source of missed filings.

Financial Year-End

Your company’s financial year-end is the date to which you prepare your annual accounts. For many companies, this is 31st March or 31st December, though you can choose any date that suits your business.

You typically have nine months from the company’s year-end to file accounts with Companies House.

Corporation Tax Accounting Period

Your Corporation Tax accounting period usually aligns with your financial year, but not always. You have 12 months from the end of your accounting period to file your Company Tax Return with HMRC, though any Corporation Tax due must be paid within nine months and one day.

Payroll and Benefits Deadlines

If you employ anyone (including yourself as a director), you’ll have separate deadlines for payroll year-end submissions (19th April following the tax year-end) and P11D benefits reporting (6th July).

Getting these dates in your diary early is the first step toward compliance success.

Companies House Compliance: What You Must File

Companies House maintains the official register of UK companies, and every limited company must file certain documents to remain in good standing.

Annual Accounts Filing

All limited companies must file accounts with Companies House, even if you’ve made no transactions during the year. The deadline is typically nine months after your financial year-end for private companies.

Your accounts must include a balance sheet signed by a director and, depending on your company size, potentially a profit and loss account, director’s report, and auditor’s report. Micro-entities and small companies benefit from simplified filing requirements.

Filing late incurs automatic penalties starting at £150 for a private company or LLP accounts filed up to one month late, rising to £1,500 for accounts more than six months late. These penalties double for repeat offences within five years.

Confirmation Statement

The confirmation statement must be filed at least once every 12 months. It confirms key details about your company are correct, including registered office address, director and shareholder information, share capital, and the nature of business activities.

Even if nothing has changed, you must still file. The deadline is 14 days after the “review date” (typically 12 months after your last confirmation statement or incorporation date). Late filing results in criminal prosecution of the company and its directors, not just a financial penalty.

Changes to Company Information

Beyond annual requirements, you must notify Companies House within 14 days of certain changes, including new or departing directors or company secretaries, changes to registered office address, allotment of new shares, or changes to shareholder details.

Many directors don’t realize that even a simple house move, if it’s your registered office address, requires a Companies House filing.

Persons with Significant Control (PSC) Register

Companies must maintain and file information about people who own or control the company. Generally, this means anyone who holds more than 25% of shares or voting rights, or who otherwise exercises significant influence or control.

PSC information must be kept up to date and filed alongside your confirmation statement. Failure to maintain an accurate PSC register is a criminal offence.

HMRC Compliance: Corporation Tax and Beyond

While Companies House wants to know who you are and how you’re structured, HMRC is primarily interested in your taxable profits and what you owe.

Company Tax Return (CT600)

Limited companies must file a Company Tax Return (form CT600) for each accounting period, even if you made a loss or owe no tax. The deadline is 12 months after the end of the accounting period.

Your return must include full statutory accounts prepared under UK accounting standards, along with detailed tax computations. The computations adjust your accounting profit to calculate your taxable profit, accounting for items that are treated differently for tax purposes.

While you have 12 months to file, any Corporation Tax due must be paid within nine months and one day of your accounting period end. Large companies have different payment rules and may need to pay in instalments.

Interest and Penalties for Late Filing

File your Company Tax Return even one day late, and you’ll face an immediate £100 penalty. This increases to £200 if you’re three months late, and continues to escalate. HMRC will also estimate your tax liability and charge interest if your return is late.

Late payment of Corporation Tax incurs interest charges from the day after the payment deadline. These rates can be significant and add up quickly.

iXBRL Format Requirements

Company Tax Returns must include your accounts in iXBRL (inline eXtensible Business Reporting Language) format. This allows HMRC to read your accounts electronically. Most accounting software now handles this automatically, but it’s crucial to verify your submission is in the correct format.

Dividend Documentation: Getting it Right

Dividends can be a tax-efficient ways to extract profits from your company, but only if you follow the proper procedures. Poor dividend administration is a common issue that can create serious problems during HMRC enquiries.

Legal Requirements for Dividend Payments

Dividends can only be paid from distributable profits, essentially retained earnings available after meeting all liabilities. Paying dividends when insufficient profits exist creates an illegal dividend, which directors may be personally liable to repay.

Dividend Documentation

Every dividend payment requires proper paperwork. At minimum, you need board minutes recording the dividend declaration, including the date, amount per share, and total dividend. Each shareholder should receive a dividend voucher showing the date, company name, shareholder name, amount paid, and the tax credit available (though tax credits were removed for most dividends, the voucher format remains similar).

Keep copies of all dividend paperwork with your company records. During an HMRC enquiry, one of the first things they’ll request is evidence that payments labelled as dividends were actually properly declared dividends rather than disguised salary.

Dividend Timing and Tax Planning

Dividends are taxed in the tax year they’re paid, not declared. This creates planning opportunities, but also requires careful record-keeping of payment dates. Directors should track their dividend income against personal allowances and tax thresholds, particularly the £500 dividend allowance (for 2024/25 tax year).

Common Dividend Mistakes

Common errors include paying dividends without sufficient reserves, failing to maintain proper documentation, paying dividends disproportionately to shareholdings, or drawing money informally and calling it a dividend retrospectively. Each of these can create tax complications and potential penalties.

P11D Preparation: Reporting Benefits and Expenses

If your company provides benefits to directors or employees e.g. company cars or  medical insurance, you must report these to HMRC on forms P11D.

What Needs Reporting

P11Ds report benefits including company cars and fuel, private medical insurance, beneficial loans, living accommodation, non-business travel expenses, and assets transferred to employees or made available for private use.

Some benefits are exempt from reporting if covered by a PAYE Settlement Agreement or if they’re trivial benefits (worth less than £50, not cash, not contractual, and not provided in recognition of services).

P11D Deadlines

P11Ds must be submitted to HMRC by 6th July following the end of the tax year (5th April). You must also provide copies to the employees concerned by this date.

Late submission incurs penalties of £100 per 50 employees for each month (or part month) the return is late, with additional penalties for continued non-compliance.

Class 1A National Insurance

Benefits reported on P11Ds trigger Class 1A National Insurance contributions, payable by the company at 15%. This is due by 22nd July (or 19th July if paying by post) following the tax year-end.

Payrolling Benefits

An Alternative to P11D reporting is payrolling benefits, where benefits are included in regular payroll submissions and tax is collected through PAYE throughout the year. This reduces year-end administration, though you must register with HMRC before the start of the tax year.

Internal Compliance: Documentation Best Practices

Beyond statutory filings, good internal documentation protects your company and makes compliance far easier.

Board Minutes

Maintain minutes for all board meetings, including decisions on dividends, director salaries, major contracts, and strategic matters. These minutes demonstrate proper corporate governance and can be crucial evidence if decisions are later questioned.

Accounting Records

Companies must keep adequate accounting records showing daily transactions, assets and liabilities, goods bought and sold, and stock records. Records must be kept for at least six years from the end of the financial year they relate to.

Digital records are fine, but ensure you have proper backups. Cloud-based accounting software provides good security, but check you can access records even if you stopped subscribing to the service.

Contracts and Agreements

Keep copies of all significant contracts, including employment contracts, supplier agreements, property leases, and loan agreements. These support your accounting treatment and provide evidence if disputes arise.

VAT Records

If VAT-registered, maintain detailed VAT records including all sales and purchase invoices, VAT account calculations, and copies of VAT returns. VAT records must be kept for at least six years.

Your Year-End Compliance Checklist

To help you stay on track, here’s a consolidated checklist of key year-end compliance tasks:

Three Months Before Year-End

• Review budget versus actual performance to identify potential tax planning opportunities
• Consider timing of significant expenditure or capital purchases
• Review director loan accounts to identify any issues
• Consider pension contributions before accounting period end
• Plan dividend payments taking in to account available reserves and personal tax positions

At Year-End

• Review completeness of records and chase missing documentation
• Finalise dividend declarations if planned

Within Nine Months

• Prepare accounts and tax computations
• Pay Corporation Tax (nine months and one day deadline)
• File accounts with Companies House (nine months for private companies)
• Ensure all supporting documentation is filed and archived

Within Twelve Months

• File Company Tax Return with HMRC
• File confirmation statement with Companies House (at least annually, within 14 days of review date)

After Payroll Year-End (5th April)

• Submit P11Ds by 6th July
• Pay Class 1A National Insurance by 22nd July
• Provide P11D copies to employees by 6th July

Ongoing Throughout Year

• Update Companies House within 14 days of any changes to directors, registered address, or share capital
• Maintain dividend documentation for all payments
• Keep accounting records up to date

The Cost of Non-Compliance

It’s worth remembering that compliance isn’t optional. Beyond the specific penalties for late filings, non-compliance can lead to company strike-off, disqualification of directors, loss of business opportunities (many contracts require up-to-date Companies House filings), and damage to your professional reputation.

HMRC and Companies House have increasingly sophisticated systems for identifying non-compliant companies. Trying to fly under the radar simply doesn’t work anymore.

Making Compliance Manageable

The key to stress-free compliance is planning and staying organised throughout the year, not scrambling when deadlines loom. Use accounting software to maintain real-time records, set up calendar reminders for key deadlines, address compliance matters regularly rather than annually, and consider whether professional support would give you peace of mind.

For many directors, particularly those running smaller companies or wearing multiple hats, professional accounting support isn’t an expense, it’s an investment that prevents costly mistakes and frees you to focus on growing your business.

Is Your Company Compliance-Ready?

Year-end compliance can feel overwhelming, but it doesn’t have to be. Whether you’re concerned about meeting upcoming deadlines, unsure if your documentation meets requirements, or simply want the confidence that everything is in order, we’re here to help.

Our compliance health check reviews your company’s filing status, deadlines, and documentation to identify any issues and ensure you’re meeting all your obligations to Companies House and HMRC. We’ll provide clear recommendations and can handle your ongoing compliance, giving you one less thing to worry about.

Contact us today to book your compliance health check and gain peace of mind that your company is meeting all its regulatory obligations.