Dormant Company Accounts Filing in Banchory

Dormant company accounts are the annual accounts a limited company prepares and files with Companies House when it has been dormant for Companies House purposes during the accounting period. They are typically shorter and simpler than the accounts of a trading company, because there is little or no financial activity to report. In broad terms they confirm the company's position at the balance sheet date and include the limited disclosures required for a dormant company, rather than a full profit and loss account. The exact content depends on the company's circumstances and the applicable Companies House rules, which is why it is worth checking your position before assuming a particular format applies to you.

For Companies House purposes, a company is generally treated as dormant when it has had no significant accounting transactions during the accounting period. Small, incidental movements such as a bank charge or a payment to keep the company registered are usually disregarded when assessing this, but the position can be more nuanced than it first appears. A company is not automatically dormant simply because the director has decided it is not trading. Whether the dormant route is appropriate depends on what actually happened in the period, so the accounting records should be reviewed before the accounts are prepared.

In most cases, yes. A company that is dormant for Companies House purposes generally still needs to file annual accounts and a separate confirmation statement each year, unless it has been formally dissolved or a specific rule applies. The two are distinct filings: the accounts report the company's financial position for the period, while the confirmation statement confirms that the information held on the register, such as the registered office, directors and shareholders, is correct. Dormant status is not a blanket exemption from company filing obligations, so it is worth diarising both requirements rather than assuming nothing is due.

Yes. The accounts of an active trading company include a profit and loss account, fuller notes and, depending on size, more detailed disclosure. Dormant company accounts are considerably reduced because there is no trading activity to report, and the requirements differ from those of an active company. That said, dormant companies are not all identical either. The applicable filing requirements depend on the company's circumstances and the Companies House rules in force, and there is no single form or route that suits every dormant company, so the correct approach should be confirmed for your company rather than assumed.

No, and this is one of the most common points of confusion. Companies House dormancy relates to whether the company has had significant accounting transactions in a period. Corporation Tax dormancy is an HMRC concept with its own criteria. A company can be dormant for Companies House and not for HMRC, or the other way around. Filing dormant accounts with Companies House does not automatically notify HMRC that your company is dormant, and it does not by itself change your Corporation Tax position. If you are unsure where you stand, it is worth reviewing both separately.

It depends on the company's circumstances and on what HMRC has asked for. A Corporation Tax Return (CT600) is an HMRC obligation, entirely separate from the accounts filed at Companies House, and it is not covered by dormant company accounts filing. If HMRC has issued a notice to deliver a return, the company generally needs to respond to it, even where no tax is expected to be due. Because dormancy for Companies House and dormancy for HMRC are assessed differently, this is a question to raise directly with HMRC or a qualified adviser rather than to assume.

Small, incidental transactions such as a bank charge, interest, or a payment to keep the company registered do not necessarily prevent a company from being treated as dormant for Companies House purposes. What matters is whether the company has had any significant accounting transactions during the period, and that is a judgement made on the facts. If a transaction is more substantial, or if the company has been buying, selling or invoicing in any form, the dormant route may not be appropriate and the accounts may need to be prepared on a different basis. Reviewing the bank statements and records before filing avoids surprises later.

Usually we need your company name and number, the accounting period we are preparing for, details of the directors and registered office, and confirmation of the company's activity or lack of it during that period. It also helps to see the bank statements or a brief summary of any movements, so we can assess whether the transactions are genuinely insignificant. If you have previously filed accounts or received correspondence from Companies House or HMRC, sharing that makes the picture clearer. Once we have everything, we can confirm the appropriate basis for preparing your Dormant Company Accounts Filing in Banchory and talk you through the next steps.