WebFiling is closing for accounts in April 2028 — what to use instead

By Ben Davies · Updated 3 October 2026

From April 2028, you will no longer be able to file your company's annual accounts on the Companies House website. Companies House confirmed on 9 June 2026 that all company accounts filed on or after 1 April 2028 must go through commercial software — a year later than the originally planned April 2027, after concerns from smaller companies. The free WebFiling route for accounts, and paper filing, close on that date.

If you run a dormant or small company and your annual routine is "log into WebFiling, file the accounts for free, done", this is the change that ends it. (WebFiling's dormant accounts form only ever took a company that had never traded. A company that traded before going dormant has always had to file its dormant accounts through software or on paper.) Here's exactly what's closing, what isn't, and your options.

What's closing — and what isn't

Only the accounts routes are closing. WebFiling itself isn't being switched off.

Closing from April 2028:

• Filing annual accounts (including dormant accounts) through WebFiling
• Filing accounts on paper by post

Staying on WebFiling:

• Confirmation statements (CS01)
• Director appointments and resignations
• Registered office address changes
• Other statutory forms

This has happened before, by the way: HMRC's free filing service, CATO (Company Accounts and Tax Online), which let small companies file their accounts and tax return together, already closed on 31 March 2026. The WebFiling accounts closure finishes the job — after April 2028, software is the only way accounts get to Companies House.

Why Companies House is doing this

The reforms come from the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023. Software-filed accounts arrive digitally tagged (iXBRL), which lets Companies House validate them properly and makes the register harder to abuse with junk filings. The same reform package will require small companies and micro-entities to file a profit and loss account — with an opt-out from having it published, though how that works is still to be confirmed — and abolishes abridged accounts. Our full guide to the April 2028 changes covers the whole package.

Your options once WebFiling closes for accounts

There are really only three.

1. An accountant

Accountants file through their own software, so nothing changes except your bill. For an actively trading company this may be money well spent. For a dormant company, paying £150–£400 a year for someone to file accounts for a year in which nothing happened is hard to justify — see do I need an accountant for a dormant company?

2. General accounts software

Mainstream accounting packages will file accounts to Companies House. But they're built for trading businesses — bookkeeping, VAT, payroll — and priced accordingly (typically £15–£40 per month). Running one to file a dormant company's accounts once a year is overkill.

3. A filing service built for your situation

If your company is dormant or barely trading, a focused filing service does the one job cheaply. DormantFile files dormant accounts — including ones that carry figures from a trading past — and micro-entity (FRS 105) accounts through the Companies House software channel — the exact route that becomes mandatory in 2028 — plus the nil CT600 to HMRC that WebFiling never handled anyway, from £19/year.

How to choose dormant filing software

Not everything calling itself "dormant accounts software" is built the same. Before you commit to one, check for:

• Direct software filing, for your kind of balance sheet. The provider should submit dormant accounts to Companies House through its software channel itself — not hand you a form to post. And if your company traded before going dormant, check it can file a balance sheet that carries those figures, not just share capital.
• Sensible handling of your authentication code. You shouldn't have to email your Companies House authentication code to anyone. It should be stored encrypted and used only on your behalf.
• A real acceptance reference back from the registry — not just a "we've submitted it" message. That's the confirmation WebFiling used to give you.
• The nil CT600 covered too. WebFiling never touched Corporation Tax, so most dormant companies still need somewhere to file that — doing both from one login saves the second one.
• A flat annual price, with no surprise upsells and no "free trial" that quietly converts into a subscription.

Do you need to act now?

No. WebFiling accounts filing works as normal until April 2028, and there's no advantage in panicking — your deadlines aren't changing, and the late filing penalties regime isn't either. If you'd rather switch before the deadline rush, filing dormant accounts online already works today — see how the main services compare.

The sensible move is simply to decide your route before your first post-April-2028 accounts are due, rather than discovering the WebFiling button has gone three days before your deadline. The 2028 reforms hub sets out everything else changing at the same time. If you'd rather settle it early and forget about it, see how DormantFile works and pricing — customers filing with us are already on the 2028 rails, so the switch-off date is a non-event.