UK Confirmation Statement Guide 2026: Deadlines, Fees, and Penalties

What is a confirmation statement?

A confirmation statement is a filing that tells Companies House your company’s information is up to date. It replaced the old annual return (form AR01) in June 2016, and the logic behind it is straightforward: rather than submitting the same information every year, you simply confirm that what Companies House already holds is still correct.

It is not a set of accounts. It is not a tax return. It is a compliance check, a way for the register to stay accurate without requiring companies to re-enter data that has not changed.

Who needs to file one?

Every company registered at Companies House must file a confirmation statement at least once every 12 months. That includes:

• Private limited companies (Ltd)
• Public limited companies (PLC)
• Limited liability partnerships (LLPs)
• Unlimited companies
• Community interest companies

It does not matter whether the company is trading, dormant, or has never conducted a single transaction. If it exists on the Companies House register, it needs a confirmation statement.

Sole traders and ordinary partnerships are not registered at Companies House and are therefore exempt.

The deadline rules

Your confirmation statement must be filed at least once every 12 months from either:

• The date of incorporation (for the first statement), or
• The date of the previous confirmation statement

The date that starts each 12-month period is called your confirmation date. You then have 14 days after the confirmation date to actually file the statement.

So if your confirmation date is 15 March 2026, you must file by 29 March 2026.

You can file early, at any point during the 12-month period. Some companies file more frequently to keep the register current after changes. Each time you file, it resets the clock for the next 12-month period.

The fee

The filing fee is £13 if you file online, or £40 if you file on paper. There is essentially no reason to file on paper in 2026. The online process is faster, cheaper, and immediately reflected on the register.

The £13 fee is payable each time you file a confirmation statement, even if nothing has changed. It is a per-filing charge, not an annual subscription.

What information does it cover?

When you file, you are confirming (or updating) the following details:

• Registered office address
• Officers (directors and secretaries), names, addresses, dates of birth, nationalities
• Statement of capital, number and class of shares, nominal values, amounts paid and unpaid
• Shareholders (people with significant control, or PSCs)
• SIC codes, the Standard Industrial Classification codes describing your company’s activities
• Trading status of shares, whether shares are traded on a regulated market, or admitted to trading on another market

Since April 2023, companies must also provide a registered email address as part of the confirmation statement. This is not published on the public register. It is used by Companies House to communicate with the company.

What happens if you file late?

This is where people get complacent. There is no financial penalty for a late confirmation statement in the way there is for late accounts. Companies House does not issue automatic fines.

But the consequences are serious:

Your company can be struck off. If Companies House believes a company is no longer carrying on business or in operation, it can start compulsory strike-off proceedings under section 1000 of the Companies Act 2006. A missing confirmation statement is one of the clearest signals that a company may be defunct.

Directors commit a criminal offence. Failing to deliver a confirmation statement is an offence under section 853L of the Companies Act. Every director (or designated member of an LLP) can be prosecuted. The penalty on conviction is a fine.

It blocks other filings. Some changes at Companies House cannot be processed if your confirmation statement is overdue. This can create cascading delays when you need to update directors, file accounts, or process share transfers.

It damages your credibility. Anyone can check the Companies House register for free. Investors, lenders, landlords, and potential business partners routinely check whether a company’s filings are up to date. An overdue confirmation statement is a red flag.

How to file

Online (recommended)

• Go to the Companies House WebFiling service
• Sign in with your Companies House authentication code (this is a six-character alphanumeric code posted to your registered office, if you have lost it, you can request a new one online)
• Select “File a confirmation statement”
• Review each section of information. If everything is correct, confirm it. If anything needs updating, make the changes before submitting.
• Pay the £13 fee by debit card, credit card, or Companies House account
• Submit

The statement is typically registered within 24 hours.

Using third-party software

Many accounting and company secretarial software packages can file confirmation statements directly via the Companies House API. If you manage multiple companies, this is often more efficient than filing each one manually through WebFiling.

On paper

You can download form CS01 from the Companies House website, complete it, and post it with a cheque for £40. Processing takes several weeks. This is not recommended unless you genuinely cannot access the internet.

Common mistakes

Confusing the confirmation statement with annual accounts. They are separate filings with separate deadlines. Filing your accounts does not satisfy the confirmation statement requirement, and vice versa.

Forgetting about dormant companies. A dormant company still needs a confirmation statement every 12 months. Dormant does not mean exempt.

Not updating PSC information. If your people with significant control have changed, through share transfers, changes in voting rights, or new appointments, you must update this before confirming. Filing an inaccurate confirmation statement is itself an offence.

Losing the authentication code. You need this to file online. If you have moved offices and the code was posted to the old address, request a new one well before your filing deadline. It can take up to 10 days to arrive.

Assuming ‘no changes’ means ‘no filing needed.’ Even if absolutely nothing has changed since your last confirmation statement, you still need to file and pay £13. The statement confirms that nothing has changed, that is the point.

How CompCal helps

CompCal tracks your confirmation statement deadline automatically based on your company’s incorporation date or last filing date. You will receive alerts in plenty of time to review your Companies House record, gather any updated information, and file before the deadline.

For businesses managing multiple UK entities, or UK companies alongside entities in other jurisdictions. CompCal consolidates every deadline into one view. No more remembering which company is due when.

Get started with CompCal and never miss a confirmation statement deadline.