In the first couple of months after forming your Limited Company you will begin to receive official mail from Companies House and HMRC, most of which will notify you of the filing obligations required by those two government offices.
Limited company directors, or the secretary if you chose to appoint one, are legally responsible for completing and submitting statutory documents. This includes filing the following documents with the relevant body-
Companies House require
- Check and confirm statement
- Annual company accounts
HMRC require
- Annual company accounts
- CT600 Corporation
- Tax Return Payment of any corporation tax due
If your company is dormant you can notify your local Corporation Tax Office that the company is not trading. HMRC will normally include a dormant company form with your tax reference letter. Once done, your company should not have any Corporation Tax requirements until it becomes active. Although it is important to note that you will still have to file dormant accounts and an annual return with Companies House.
Companies House will provide you with an accounting reference date (ARD) when your company is registered. This represents the end of your financial year and is the date to which your annual accounts should be prepared. The ARD will fall on the last day of the month in which your company was registered – for example: if you register a company on 12th March, your ARD will be 31st March the following year and each year thereafter.
You must deliver annual accounts to Companies House within 9 months of the ARD. For information on what these should include please see the relevant [blog] which also includes more on who is exempt from providing full accounts.
The check and confirm statement must be filed with Companies House at least once every 12 months within 14 days of the anniversary of incorporation. The check and confirm statement confirms important company details at the time of submission, including: the registered office address, director and secretary details, and information about shares and shareholders.
Apart from changes to shareholders’ details, you must notify Companies House as soon as possible if there are any changes to your company details throughout the year.
Within 3 months of starting any kind of business activity, you must register your company as ‘active’ for Corporation Tax purposes. HMRC will then inform you of your company’s Corporation Tax accounting period. This will begin on the date your business starts trading, and it will usually end on your company’s accounting reference date (ARD). The deadline for paying Corporation Tax is within 9 months and 1 day after the end of your accounting period. However, the deadline for delivering your Company Tax Return is within 12 months after the end of the accounting period. You must also include full annual accounts with each tax return, even if your company qualifies as ‘small’.
Filing documents at Companies House and HMRC is always the responsibility of the company director. Even if you engage the services of an accountant or service provider, the company directors must ensure the documents are accurate and filed on time.
