Dormant & non-trading company guides

The difference between annual accounts and a confirmation statement, including deadlines, content, and fees for dormant companies.

What a newly incorporated dormant company needs to file in its first year: accounts, Company Tax Return (CT600), and confirmation statement timelines.

A worked FRS 105 micro-entity balance sheet for a non-trading company repaying a Bounce Back Loan, line by line, with the figures explained.

Almost — but not quite, and the gap matters. What can legally be automated in dormant company filing, what can't, and how one-click autopilot filing works.

Not every dormant company needs to file a Company Tax Return (CT600). This guide explains who needs to file and who doesn't.

How DormantFile's autopilot files your dormant accounts each year: a reminder email 30 days before the deadline, one click to confirm, and the filing is done.

If your company is repaying a Bounce Back Loan it isn't dormant, but it doesn't need an accountant either. Here's how to file micro-entity accounts (FRS 105) and a Company Tax Return (CT600) with no tax to pay.

Form AA02 is a paper form only for a company limited by shares that has never traded. Who it shuts out, why it stops in April 2028, and how DormantFile files dormant accounts instead.

A walkthrough of the Corporation Tax section in DormantFile — adding your accounting periods, attaching accounts, signing with your Government Gateway, and getting confirmation from HMRC.

Step-by-step guide to filing a nil Corporation Tax return (CT600) with HMRC for a dormant company, including what you need and how to submit.

Why community interest companies can't file accounts like ordinary limited companies: the CIC34 report, the £15 fee, the routes Companies House actually accepts, what a dormant CIC files, and how the Company Tax Return fits alongside it.

What a flat management or right-to-manage (RTM) company has to file at Companies House and HMRC, the trust-vs-books test that decides whether it's dormant, and how to get it filed.

How to file annual dormant accounts with Companies House using DormantFile, including what you need, the deadlines, and the penalties for filing late.

What a dormant limited liability partnership has to file, the deadlines, the audit-exemption statements a dormant LLP balance sheet must carry, and how to get it filed in a couple of minutes.

HMRC error 1046 means your Government Gateway sign-in failed for the Corporation Tax service. Here's what actually causes it — usually a missing enrolment, not a wrong password — and how to fix each cause.

Where to find proof that your dormant company accounts and CT600 were filed, what information a filing receipt contains, and how to keep records.

What to file the year your company stops being dormant, how to move to micro-entity accounts, and how to return to dormant the year after.

Everything UK directors need to know about Company Tax Returns (CT600s) for dormant companies — when to file, what HMRC expects, how to file a nil return, and catching up.

The easiest way to file dormant company accounts is software built for dormant companies. How DormantFile does it in about two minutes, what an accountant costs instead, and why year two is one click.

If your dormant company's year end is 31 December, its accounts are due at Companies House by 30 September. What's due, what happens on 1 October, and how to be done in minutes.

How to check a Companies House late filing penalty is right on the register's own facts, when it can be appealed, the reasons rejected every time — including 'the company was dormant' — and what to do instead.

When your dormant company accounts and Company Tax Return (CT600) are due, how deadlines are calculated, and what happens in the first year.

Why dormant company deadlines get missed, what lateness costs, and a layered system — calendar, reminders, and one-click autopilot — that makes missing one much less likely.

Subscribe to DormantFile's calendar feed to see your accounts, confirmation statement and director ID verification deadlines — plus CT600 dates for the periods you've added — in Google Calendar, Outlook, or Apple Calendar.

If your dormant company has missed filing deadlines, here is how to get back on track — what to file, what order, and how to stop penalties getting worse.

Late filing penalties from Companies House and HMRC for dormant companies, plus the risk of being struck off the register.

Find your dormant accounts deadline, understand the 9-month and 12-month rules, and see the exact Companies House and HMRC late filing penalty bands.

One-off dormant accounts services charge £8.99–£9 to file one form, once. What that leaves out — the Company Tax Return, the deadlines, next year — and what DormantFile covers instead.

When a dormant company needs an accountant and when it doesn't, and what each option costs.

What it costs to file for a dormant company: DormantFile from £19 a year, an accountant at £80–£150+, and the penalties for filing late.

A complete annual compliance checklist for dormant companies: what to file, when, and how to do it for £69/year without paying an accountant.

How a director's loan account affects dormant company status, when it breaks dormancy, and what to file if it does.

From April 2028 every UK company — dormant ones included — must file its accounts through commercial software. What's changing, when it starts, and how DormantFile already files that way.

How UK company hijacking works, why dormant companies are the prime target, and the three protections — PROOF, monitoring, and fast reporting — that stop it.

Identity verification is now mandatory under the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 (ECCTA). What dormant company directors and people with significant control (PSCs) need to do, by when, and how.

From April 2028 small companies and micro-entities must file a profit and loss account at Companies House — but can opt out of it being published. What's required, what stays private, and what dormant companies should expect.

How close can dormant company compliance get to zero effort? A realistic annual routine: one click for accounts, a £50 confirmation statement, and a nil CT600 you file yourself.

A single bank transfer can break dormant status. What counts as a significant accounting transaction under the Companies Act 2006, and how to stay dormant.

A dormant company that never traded can still be charged £200, then £200 again, for a Corporation Tax return HMRC asked for. Here is the route that works, the 30-day clock, and what the letter has to say.

Got an HMRC letter asking you to confirm dormancy or file a Company Tax Return (CT600)? A calm, step-by-step guide for dormant company directors on how to respond.

Reference guide to every HMRC letter a dormant UK company might receive — CT603 notices, late filing penalty notices, CT41G — what they mean and how to respond.

Dormant means one thing to Companies House and something slightly different to HMRC, and non-trading is a looser word than either — the wrong label can cost you filings and penalties. The difference in plain English, with examples.

The definition of a dormant company under UK law, common scenarios, and how to check whether your company qualifies.

The difference between micro-entity (FRS 105) and small company (FRS 102 1A) accounts — the size thresholds, what each one contains, and how to choose.

Pause your limited company instead of closing it — the dividend tax squeeze, prerequisites, and the full HMRC and Companies House process for side-hustlers.

Striking the company off (form DS01) vs keeping it dormant — annual costs, ECCTA admin, bank de-risking, restoration costs, and a three-question framework to make the call.

Registering a dormant company stops anyone else taking the name at Companies House. What that does and doesn't protect, what it costs each year, and how to keep it effortless.

HMRC's free service for filing company accounts and tax returns (CATO) closed on 31 March 2026. How a dormant company files its Company Tax Return and accounts now.

From April 2028 Companies House takes annual accounts only through commercial software — WebFiling and paper stop taking them. What's closing, what isn't, and how DormantFile already files the way Companies House will require.

What mortgage lenders, immigration caseworkers, and credit agencies see when you direct a dormant UK company — and how to keep it from causing problems.

From the 2025/26 tax year, directors who file Self Assessment must declare every close company directorship on the SA102 — dormant companies included. What to enter, box by box.

If your company took a Bounce Back Loan and is now dormant, you cannot simply close it. Here is what you need to do while the loan is outstanding.

What the Companies House authentication code is, how to request one, where to find it, what to do if it's lost, and how it works with dormant filings.

How to strike off a dormant company using DS01, what it costs, how long it takes, and reasons you might want to keep the company open.

Practical steps to bring a dormant company back to life: HMRC registration, bank accounts, accounts, VAT, and PAYE.

What your Companies House authentication code can do, who routinely holds client codes, and an honest look at the trade-off when a filing service stores yours.

Non-resident directors can keep a UK dormant company — but missed post, time zones and forgotten deadlines cause penalties. How to run it remotely without stress.

How to keep a portfolio of dormant companies compliant — dashboard overview, deadline tracking, CSV exports, and agent mode for accountants.

What happens when Companies House strikes off a company: the process, consequences, and how to prevent or reverse it.