What Is a Confirmation Statement?

Running a limited company comes with a calendar of obligations, and the confirmation statement is one of the most important — and most misunderstood. It is a yearly filing whose only job is to tell Companies House, in effect, "yes, the details you hold about us are still correct." It is quick and cheap, but missing it carries serious consequences, including having your company struck off the register entirely. This guide explains what a confirmation statement is, what it covers, when it is due, and how it differs from your accounts and tax return. This is general information, not legal advice.

What a confirmation statement is

A confirmation statement is an annual filing that confirms the information Companies House holds about your company is accurate and up to date. It replaced the older annual return in 2016, simplifying the process. Rather than re-entering everything from scratch each year, you review what Companies House already has on record and confirm it is right — updating anything that has changed.

Every limited company and every limited liability partnership must file at least one confirmation statement every year. This applies even if:

• Nothing about the company has changed.
• The company has not traded.
• The company is dormant — see our guide to what a dormant company is.

The duty is unavoidable. Filing it is part of the ongoing compliance you take on the moment you register a UK company, and it sits alongside the other annual jobs that keep a company in good standing.

What it confirms

The confirmation statement checks the core public record about your company. Broadly, it covers:

• Registered office address — the official address for the company.
• Directors and, if you have one, the company secretary.
• Registered email address — now required for companies.
• Statement of capital — for companies with shares, the number and value of shares.
• Shareholders (members) — who owns the shares.
• People with significant control (PSCs) — individuals who ultimately own or control the company, typically those holding more than 25 percent of shares or voting rights.
• SIC codes — the standard industrial classification codes describing what the company does.

Some of these details — the registered office, directors and PSCs — can also be updated at any time during the year using separate forms, and indeed should be, rather than waiting for the statement. The confirmation statement is the moment you certify that the whole picture is correct. The PSC information is one of the most scrutinised parts, because it underpins transparency about who really controls UK companies.

Think of the confirmation statement as a yearly tap on the shoulder: Companies House asking you to look at your public record and confirm it still matches reality. It is a verification, not a fresh disclosure.

When it is due

Your company has a review period, usually 12 months long, that starts on:

• The date your company was incorporated, for your first statement; or
• The date of your last confirmation statement, thereafter.

When the review period ends, you have a window — currently 14 days — to file the statement. You can file early or more than once a year (for example, to record a change), but the clock simply resets each time. The key discipline is that you must never let 12 months pass without filing one.

There is a fee to file, payable once in a 12-month payment period regardless of how many statements you submit in that time. Filing online is cheaper and faster than filing on paper, and most companies do it through the Companies House service.

How it differs from accounts and tax

This is where confusion sets in, because a company has several separate annual obligations that are easy to muddle. They are genuinely different things:

The confirmation statement contains no financial information about how the company is performing — that is the job of the annual accounts. And it is entirely separate from the Corporation Tax return, which goes to HMRC, not Companies House. Filing your confirmation statement does not mean you have filed your accounts or paid your tax, and vice versa. Each has its own deadline, and missing any of them has its own penalties. Keeping these dates straight is part of the wider admin load that distinguishes a company from being a sole trader.

What happens if you do not file

Failing to file a confirmation statement is not a minor oversight — it is a criminal offence. Companies House can prosecute the company's directors. In practice, the more common outcome is that Companies House begins the process of striking the company off the register, which dissolves it.

The consequences of dissolution are serious:

• The company ceases to exist as a legal entity.
• Its bank accounts can be frozen.
• Any remaining assets pass to the Crown (a process called bona vacantia).
• Restoring a struck-off company is possible but can be slow and costly.

Unlike late accounts, a late confirmation statement does not carry an automatic financial penalty, but that should not breed complacency — the risk of being struck off is far more damaging. Setting a recurring reminder, or letting an accountant or company formation agent handle it, is the simplest way to stay safe.

Filing it yourself

For a straightforward company with no changes, filing is quick. The broad steps are:

1. Log in to the Companies House online service.
2. Review the details held — directors, registered office, PSCs, shareholders, SIC codes.
3. Update anything that is out of date (some changes need separate forms first).
4. Confirm the record is accurate and submit.
5. Pay the annual fee if it is due.

If your company is part of a more complex structure, or you have had changes to shareholdings or control during the year, it is worth getting the detail right — errors on the public record can cause problems with banks, lenders and investors later.

The bottom line

A confirmation statement is a yearly filing that confirms the information Companies House holds about your company is correct — directors, registered office, shareholders, people with significant control and more. Every company and LLP must file at least one a year, even if nothing has changed and even if dormant. It is not the same as your accounts or your tax return, and missing it can ultimately lead to your company being struck off. File it on time, keep your details accurate during the year, and treat Companies House and GOV.UK as the authoritative sources.