Confirmation statements: what they are and when to file

A confirmation statement is a filing that confirms to Companies House that the information it holds about your company is up to date. It replaced the annual return, and every company, including dormant and non-trading companies, must file one at least once every year.

You must file even if nothing has changed during the year. You also state that the company’s intended future activities are lawful. Companies House uses the statement to keep the public register accurate, which matters because lenders, suppliers and customers read it.

It is not the same as your accounts. A confirmation statement covers who runs the company and who owns it. Your accounts show how the company has performed, and they are covered in our guide on how to file company accounts.

You must review your records and file at least one confirmation statement every 12 months. The review period ends 12 months after the date the company was incorporated (for the first statement) or after the confirmation statement date on your last one.

You can file up to 14 days after the review period has ended. You can also file early: you do not have to wait for the period to end, but you then choose a new confirmation statement date, and the next review period starts the day after it.

Companies House says you can check your confirmation date and filing deadline on the company information register, and sign up for an email reminder. Do that once and the date stops depending on someone’s memory.

The statement confirms your company’s details, and you must update the register for certain changes before you confirm it. Those are changes to your directors and secretary, people with significant control (PSCs), the registered office address and the registered email address.

There is also an additional information section you can complete if any of these have changed:

• Your Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) code
• Your statement of capital
• The trading status of shares
• An exemption from providing PSC information
• Shareholder information

If you have not already given Companies House a registered email address, you must provide one in the statement. It is used to contact the company and is not published on the public register.

A confirmation statement confirms who the company is, the annual return was the older form of the same filing, and annual accounts show how the company has done. The statement replaced the annual return, which is why GOV.UK still labels the filing page with both names.

Each has its own deadline and its own penalties, so a company can be on time with one and late with another. Our guide to business rates covers a separate yearly cost that applies if you occupy business premises.

You need your Companies House password and authentication code, and every director must have verified their identity. Companies House will not accept the statement until all directors have done so.

1. Check the details on the register and file any changes you must make first.
2. Make sure each director has verified their identity and has a Companies House personal code.
3. Sign in to Companies House online filing with your password and authentication code.
4. Enter each director’s personal code, tick the statement confirming they have verified, and complete the review.
5. Pay the fee and submit.

Persons with significant control must also verify their identity and provide their personal code, though the period for doing so depends on your situation. Companies House sets this out in its guidance on verifying your identity, listed in the sources.

Filing a confirmation statement costs £50 online or £110 for a paper form CS01 sent by post. Those are the fees on GOV.UK as of October 2026, and they were last updated on 1 February 2026.

The fee follows the payment period, which is separate from the review period. You pay it once, with the first statement you file in each 12-month payment period. You can file further statements in the same payment period without paying again, and a new fee falls due in the next one.

If you do not file, you can be fined up to £5,000 and the company may be struck off the Companies House register. Companies House may issue a financial penalty, so treat the date as fixed and put it in the diary the day your last statement is accepted.

A filing that is overdue can also complicate a business loan application, because a lender reading the register sees a company that is behind with its filings. Lenders decide on their own criteria, so we cannot say how any one of them would treat it. Getting the filing right first removes the question.

Yes, you can ask an accountant or company secretary to file for you, but the directors stay responsible for the information and the deadline. Anyone filing needs the company’s authentication code and the directors’ personal codes.

Whoever does it, check the register entry yourself afterwards. If your company has changed address, taken on a shareholder or had a director leave, those changes need to reach Companies House as well, and an out-of-date director, registered office or PSC entry is exactly what the statement exists to catch.

If you are still setting up, our guide on how to set up a limited company covers the first filings, and the difference between a sole trader and a limited company explains why only companies file these statements.

Capzy is a credit broker, not a lender, and is paid by the lender. We do not file confirmation statements or give legal, tax or accounting advice, so your accountant or Companies House is the place for filing questions.

What we can do is help when you want finance. A tidy, up-to-date company record makes it easier to apply, and you can check your funding options with a soft search that does not affect your credit score. A full application to a lender may involve a hard search, and any offer is subject to status and lender criteria. Our directory of business lenders shows who offers what.