Dormant Company Accounts Filing in Godalming

Dormant company accounts are the annual accounts a company prepares for Companies House when it has been dormant for Companies House purposes during the accounting period — typically because it had no significant accounting transactions in that period. They are a simplified set of accounts compared with those of a trading company, but they still need to be prepared for the correct period and filed through the appropriate route. The exact content and format depend on the company's circumstances and the current Companies House rules, so it is worth confirming the position for your company rather than assuming one universal form applies to everyone.

For Companies House purposes, dormancy generally turns on whether the company had any significant accounting transactions during the accounting period. A company that has simply stopped trading but is still processing transactions, receiving income, or paying expenses is not usually dormant on that basis. Because the test looks at activity in the period rather than at your intentions, a company can move in and out of dormancy from one year to the next. If you are unsure whether your company meets the criteria for the period in question, it is sensible to check before deciding which accounts to prepare.

In most cases, yes. A company that is dormant for Companies House purposes generally still has to file annual accounts for each accounting period, unless it has been formally dissolved or a specific rule applies to its situation. Dormant status is not the same thing as having no filing obligations. Being dormant may change what the accounts look like and which filing route is used, but it does not usually remove the requirement to file altogether. The safest approach is to treat the annual accounts as a live obligation each year and confirm the position for your own company.

A confirmation statement is a separate Companies House filing from the annual accounts, and a dormant company will generally still need to file one. The confirmation statement confirms that the information Companies House holds about the company — such as the registered office, directors, and people with significant control — is correct as at the confirmation date. It is not a replacement for dormant company accounts, and dormant accounts are not a replacement for it. Both can be due in the same year, so it helps to track them as two distinct obligations.

Yes, in most cases they are considerably simpler. Because there has been no significant accounting activity, the accounts tend to be much shorter than those of a trading company, with far less detail required. That said, a dormant company may have different accounting requirements from an active trading company, and the requirements can vary depending on the company's circumstances and the applicable Companies House rules. It is not safe to assume that every dormant company can use the same form or filing route — AA02, for example, is not a universal dormant accounts form for every dormant company — so the correct approach needs to be matched to your company.

No — these are two separate concepts with different rules. A company can be dormant for Companies House purposes but not automatically dormant for Corporation Tax with HMRC, and the reverse can also apply. Filing dormant accounts with Companies House does not, on its own, notify HMRC that the company is dormant, and it does not settle or remove any Corporation Tax obligations. If you think your company may also be dormant for Corporation Tax purposes, that position usually needs to be dealt with separately with HMRC rather than assumed from your Companies House filing.

That depends on the company's circumstances and on HMRC's view of its Corporation Tax position. A Corporation Tax Return (CT600) is an HMRC obligation and sits entirely separately from your dormant company accounts filing at Companies House. Some companies that are dormant for Corporation Tax purposes may not need to file a return for a particular period, while others may still need to notify HMRC or file for certain periods. Because the two regimes work independently, it is worth checking your Corporation Tax position directly rather than relying on your Companies House dormant status.

Usually you will need the company name and registration number, the accounting period being reported, the registered office and other basic company details held at Companies House, and confirmation of the company's activity — or lack of it — during that period. Details of the directors and the company's share capital may also be relevant depending on the filing route that applies. Where there have been any transactions, such as bank charges or interest, it is important to flag these early, because they can affect whether the company actually qualifies as dormant for Companies House purposes and therefore what should be filed.