When are limited company accounts due?

Your first set of statutory accounts is usually due 21 months after the date you incorporated. After that, annual accounts are due at Companies House 9 months after your accounting year-end. Your Corporation Tax return (CT600) is due later, 12 months after year-end, but the tax itself must be paid earlier, 9 months and 1 day after year-end. Missing any of these triggers an automatic penalty.

Companies House requires your annual accounts within 9 months of your accounting reference date (your year-end). Your first accounts have a longer window, 21 months after incorporation, because your first year-end is usually set to the end of the month you incorporated in. We track this date for every client so nothing is filed late.

Companies House charges an automatic penalty starting at £150 for accounts up to one month late, rising to £1,500 for accounts more than six months late, and penalties double if you were also late the previous year. Persistent late filing can also lead to your company being struck off the register.

No, they run separately. Companies House wants your annual accounts within 9 months of year-end. HMRC wants your Corporation Tax paid within 9 months and 1 day of year-end, and your CT600 return filed within 12 months. It is easy to hit one deadline and miss the other, which is why we track both together.

Companies House will sometimes grant a short extension if you apply before the deadline and have a genuine, unexpected reason, such as illness or a fire. Extensions are not automatic and are becoming harder to get, so it is far safer to plan to file on time in the first place.

Diarise your accounting reference date the moment your company is formed, and start preparing accounts well before the 9-month mark rather than at the last minute. Most directors who use an accountant simply hand this problem over entirely, we track every deadline and file in good time as standard.