Late filing penalties for dormant companies

By Ben Davies · Updated 26 September 2026

Even if your company is dormant and has done nothing all year, you are still legally required to file annual accounts with Companies House and (when HMRC sends a notice to deliver one) a nil CT600 (a Company Tax Return showing no tax to pay) with HMRC. If you do not file on time, penalties apply automatically.

Companies House penalties

Companies House imposes automatic, fixed penalties for late annual accounts. There is no grace period and no warning — the penalty is triggered the day after the deadline. It is one penalty per set of late accounts, in a band set by how late they are when they arrive; it doesn't add up day by day. You can appeal one, but only for reasons Companies House accepts.

For most dormant companies (private limited companies), penalties range from £150 to £1,500. If you're already late, our free late filing penalty calculator will tell you the exact band you're in (including the double-penalty rule).

These penalties are issued to the company, not the director personally. However, if you are the sole director, the company's obligation is effectively yours.

If you file late in two consecutive years, the penalty doubles. A company that is 6+ months late two years running faces a £3,000 penalty in the second year.

HMRC penalties

If HMRC has sent the company a notice to deliver a Company Tax Return, failing to file the CT600 on time triggers a separate set of penalties from HMRC:

• 1 day late: £200 penalty
• 3 months late: another £200 penalty (total £400)
• 6 months late: HMRC estimates your tax liability and charges 10% of the unpaid tax
• 12 months late: a further 10% of unpaid tax

The two flat amounts apply to returns that fell due on or after 1 April 2026. A return whose deadline passed before then carries the older £100 and £100, no matter how late it has become. A third late return in a row raises the two fixed penalties to £1,000 each (£500 where the return fell due before 1 April 2026). HMRC penalties can be appealed too.

For genuinely dormant companies with no tax liability, the 10% charges may amount to £0. But HMRC can also:

• Open an enquiry into your company's affairs
• Assume the company is trading and issue estimated tax assessments
• Charge interest on unpaid amounts

Not every dormant company needs to file a CT600 — we explain how to check in our guide on whether you need a CT600.

Risk of being struck off

If you consistently fail to file, Companies House can start the process of striking your company off the register. This means:

• Your company is dissolved and ceases to exist
• Any assets held by the company become property of the Crown (bona vacantia)
• You lose the company name

Companies House publishes a notice in The Gazette before striking off, giving you (or creditors) a chance to object. But by that point, penalties have usually already been charged. Filing whatever is overdue — the accounts, and the confirmation statement if that's late too — is usually what stops a strike-off.

How to avoid penalties

The simplest way to avoid penalties is to file on time. For a dormant company, the filing itself is straightforward — it is remembering to do it that trips people up.

• Know your filing deadlines: 9 months for accounts, 12 months for CT600. Use our free deadline calculator to find your exact dates.
• We send automatic email reminders from DormantFile at 90, 30, 14, 7, 3, and 1 day before your accounts deadline, and we remind you about any Corporation Tax deadline you add — the CT600 period comes from you and is never worked out by us, so HMRC's letter stays definitive. See how it works.
• File early. There is no benefit to waiting until the last minute, and both filings can be submitted well in advance.

DormantFile files dormant accounts — or micro-entity accounts for a company that isn't trading but had a transaction or two — and nil CT600 returns from one dashboard, starting at £19/year. We don't file for trading companies — if your company is trading, you need accounting software or an accountant.

Already behind?

If you have already missed a deadline, the penalties above have been triggered. Filing now won't cancel a penalty already charged, but it stops it moving into a higher band. Companies House and HMRC both accept late filings at any time. See our guide on how to catch up on overdue dormant company filings for the step-by-step process.

If a penalty has already been issued, read whether it can be appealed before writing to Companies House — most reasons directors give are rejected outright.

Key points

• Companies House late filing penalties range from £150 to £1,500 for private companies. They double if late two consecutive years.
• HMRC charges £200 for filing a day late, another £200 at three months, then 10% of estimated tax at six and twelve months. The two fixed penalties doubled from £100 for returns due on or after 1 April 2026; a return that fell due before then still carries the old rate however late it is.
• Persistent non-filing can result in your company being struck off.
• Penalties apply even if your company is dormant with nothing to report.
• The easiest fix: file on time. Set up deadline reminders so you do not forget.