Companies House vs HMRC: what goes where

Companies House is the registrar: it incorporates companies, maintains the public record anyone can search, and enforces the transparency rules — who the directors are, who controls the company, and what its balance sheet looks like. HMRC is the tax authority: it assesses and collects Corporation Tax, VAT, PAYE and everything else. Almost every limited company deals with both, every year, on different timetables.

Confusingly, “the accounts” go to both — but not the same way. Companies House can receive the reduced filing your size allows (a micro-entity balance sheet with footnotes, for instance), while HMRC always gets full accounts attached to the CT600 in iXBRL format, plus tax computations. That’s why “I already filed my accounts” is the most common misunderstanding we untangle — usually one filing was made and the other missed.

What statutory accounts include →

Companies House fines late accounts automatically (£150 to £1,500, doubled for repeat offenders). HMRC fines late returns on its own scale (£100 upwards, then tax-geared) and charges interest on late payment. Because the deadlines interlock — tax due at 9 months and a day, accounts at 9 months, return at 12 — the simplest defence is one combined job soon after year end: accounts, computation, return, filed to both bodies. That’s exactly what we do. Call 0114 327 1480.

Accounts + tax return, handled together →