File UK Company Confirmation Statement (Annual Return) In 2024

What is the UK confirmation statement?

A confirmation statement is a mandatory filing that limited companies and limited liability partnerships (LLPs) are required to submit annually to Companies House.

The requirement to submit the confirmation statement came into effect in June 2016, as part of the regulatory changes introduced by the the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Act 2015.

Purposes of confirmation statement

The confirmation statement serves several purposes:

• Confirming company information: It requires companies to confirm that the information held by Companies House about their registered office address, officers (directors and secretaries), and shareholders is accurate and up to date.
• SIC Code confirmation: Companies must also confirm the Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) code that best represents their business activities.
• Shareholder information: The confirmation statement includes details of the company’s shareholders, their shareholdings, and any changes in these details during the year.

Do I need to file the UK confirmation statement?

The answer is YES if you register your company in the UK. The confirmation statement is obligated for all UK Limited Companies, whether it is a UK private limited company or UK limited liability partnership.

It is mandatory even when your company hasn’t traded or has stayed dormant.

Note that your company is still required to file the confirmation statement when there is no change in the company information.

How to file a UK company confirmation statement?

Filing the annual confirmation statement is simple. You can do the filing from your home via Software Filing or WebFiling Services of the Companies House.

One thing you must keep in mind is that the director is legally required to do the filing.

Typically, the filing will take you 3 simple steps:

Step 1: Check the information of your company if there are any changes in need

You can look here for the information about your company that you supplied to the Companies House. See carefully if there is any information you need to add or update for the filing.

Below is the checklist of what you need to provide in the confirmation:

• Your company name and its registration number;
• The date when you make the confirmation;
• The major business activities that your company has been engaged in;
• Your company type such as private or public;
• The registered office address of your company;
• The address of Single Alternative Inspection Location (SAIL) – the alternative location where you keep the company records out of the registered office address;
• Details of the company secretary, if applicable;
• Details of people with significant control (PSC);
• Details of all directors; and
• Details of share capital and shareholders: This applies to companies having share capital and shareholders. The information regarding share capital you must specify in the confirmation is as follows:
  • Number of shares, their nominal value, and the amount of paid or unpaid ones;
  • Details of each class of share.

In the filing form, you are required to report any updates or modifications to the information mentioned above. If there have been no changes to the aforementioned details, there is no need to include them in the filing. Simply confirm that your company information and associated records are accurate and current.

Step 2: File the annual confirmation statement

When the time comes, the Companies House will send you a notification letter to your registered address with related requirements and dues. All you need to do is download form CS01 from the registrar’s website and fill out the required information. Then you can submit it to the Companies House via WebFiling Services.

You will need a password and authentication code to be able to do the online filing. You won’t have these if this is the first time you do the filing. New filers can start the registration here.

If you aren’t able to file online, you can manually send the form to the address of the Companies House.

Step 3: Submit payment

A confirmation statement will be followed by an annual fee. It will cost you £13 for the online filing. But for physical filing, you must pay £40 to the Companies House.

When to file the UK confirmation statement?

When it comes to filing the UK confirmation statement, there are some important guidelines to keep in mind:

Filing frequency

Your UK company is required to file the annual confirmation statement at least once every 12 months.

Flexibility

While you are obligated to file the confirmation statement at least once every 12 months, you have the flexibility to choose when within that 12-month period you wish to file it. You can submit it early or wait until closer to the end of the review period, as long as it falls within the 12-month timeframe.

Review period

The 12-month review period begins on either of the following dates, whichever is more recent.

• The date your company was incorporated
• The date you submitted your last confirmation statement.

For example, if you formed a UK limited company on January 1, 2023, your review period starts from the formation date (January 1, 2023) and ends on December 31, 2023.

However, if your company file the statement early on September 30, 2023, your next review period will start on 1 October 2023 and will end on 30 September 2024.

Submission deadline

You have 14 days after the end of the review period to file your confirmation statement with Companies House.

For instance, your review period ends on December 31, 2023, then you have 14 days after the end of the review period to file your confirmation statement. So, in this example, you must submit your statement to Companies House no later than 14 January 2024.

It’s important to remember that this is just an example, and the specific dates and deadlines will vary based on your company’s incorporation date and the previous submission date if applicable.

The key takeaway is to ensure you file your confirmation statement within the 14-day window after the end of the review period to stay compliant with the regulations.

What happens if you fail to submit the company confirmation statement?

You can file the confirmation statement late, but not delivering the statement is counted as a criminal offense.

For not filing the statement, your company will be involved in a monetary penalty. Your company, directors, secretary, and officers may be personally fined up to £5000.

For late confirmation statement filing, your company is not subject to a penalty. Even so, if you don’t do the filing, the Companies House will consider your company as ceasing operations and strike it off.

How to commit to the deadlines?

Keeping track of company annual compliance duties like the UK confirmation statement is important but easy to fail. Other requirements to bear in mind are tax filing, auditing, recordkeeping, and account filing. As being busy running business operations, you may miss the dues for the filing work.

To ensure that you do the filing on time, you can note the due dates in your company calendar. Besides, the Companies House will send you reminders of the related dates and information if you register for an email reminder service.

If you have concerns about meeting the deadlines for your annual confirmation statement and want assistance in managing your compliance responsibilities, our support team is here to help. We help you oversee the annual confirmation statement process and send you timely reminders about upcoming deadlines. Please feel free to reach out to us through email at service@bbcincorp.com or start a chat with us to receive practical support.

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