Company accounts filing deadlines

When private and public companies must deliver annual accounts to Companies House.

Duty to deliver annual accounts

Reviewed · Current · Law · From 6 April 2008

A company's directors must deliver the required accounts and reports for each financial year to the registrar.

Preparing accounts and delivering them to Companies House are distinct steps. The filing date is governed by the period allowed under section 442.

Exceptions and branches

• Different historic legislation applies to financial years beginning before the Companies Act 2006 accounts regime commenced.

First accounts longer than twelve months

Reviewed · Current · Law · From 6 April 2008

3 months

For a first accounting reference period longer than twelve months, the filing deadline is the later of the company-class period measured from the first anniversary of incorporation and three months after the period ends.

For a private company the first candidate is nine months after the first anniversary; for a public company it is six months. The second candidate is three months after the accounting reference period ends for either class.

Exceptions and branches

• A company-specific extension can supersede the generic result.

How statutory calendar months end

Reviewed · Current · Law · From 6 April 2008

The filing period ends on the corresponding date in the target month, with statutory month-end treatment where that date does not exist.

A period that begins on the last day of a month ends on the last day of the target month. A period beginning on 29 or 30 January and ending in February also ends on February's last day.

Assumptions

• Dates are treated as civil dates without time-of-day arithmetic.

Private-company accounts filing period

Reviewed · Current · Law · From 6 April 2008

9 months

A private company normally has nine months after the end of the relevant accounting reference period to deliver its accounts.

This is the ordinary period for a private company. First accounts covering more than twelve months and a shortened accounting reference period use additional statutory candidate dates.

Exceptions and branches

• An approved extension, a first long accounting period, or a shortened accounting reference period can change the date.
• Temporary statutory modifications applied to qualifying deadlines during 2020–21.

Assumptions

• The company is private immediately before the accounting reference period ends.

Public-company accounts filing period

Reviewed · Current · Law · From 6 April 2008

6 months

A public company normally has six months after the end of the relevant accounting reference period to deliver its accounts.

Public/private status is tested immediately before the accounting reference period ends. Company-specific register facts can still alter the displayed deadline.

Exceptions and branches

• An approved extension, a first long accounting period, or a shortened accounting reference period can change the date.
• Temporary statutory modifications applied to qualifying deadlines during 2020–21.

Assumptions

• The company is public immediately before the accounting reference period ends.

Shortened accounting reference period

Reviewed · Current · Law · From 6 April 2008

3 months

When an accounting reference period is shortened, the deadline is the later of the otherwise applicable filing deadline and three months from the notice shortening the period.

The three-month protection is a second candidate date; it does not automatically replace a later ordinary or first-period deadline.

Exceptions and branches

• A company-specific extension can supersede the generic result.

Temporary 2020–21 filing extensions

Reviewed · Historic · Law · 27 June 2020 to 5 April 2021

1 year

9 months

42 days

Temporary legislation increased the ordinary accounts periods to twelve months for private companies and nine months for public companies, and the confirmation-statement delivery window to 42 days.

The modifications came into force on 27 June 2020 and expired at the end of 5 April 2021, subject to statutory savings. Exact historic outcomes depend on the deadline and savings provisions, so a registered historic date should be preferred for a specific company.

Exceptions and branches

• The instrument and enabling Act contain savings for deadlines and periods already affected when the modifications expired.
• Entity-specific and public-company transitional cases need the exact company and due-date facts.

Worked examples

Ordinary private-company month end

A private company's accounting reference period ends on 31 May 2026. Nine calendar months later is 28 February 2027. Section 443 preserves month end; ordinary date overflow must not turn this into a March date.

First accounts longer than twelve months

A private company incorporated on 15 January 2025 has a first accounting reference period ending 31 January 2026. Nine months after its first incorporation anniversary is 15 October 2026; three months after period end is 30 April 2026. The later date—15 October 2026—is the generic statutory result.

These are generic, reviewable calculations. For a real company, compare them with the registered due date. Sterling never files automatically.

What changed

• 5 April 2021: Temporary legislation increased the ordinary accounts periods to twelve months for private companies and nine months for public companies, and the confirmation-statement delivery window to 42 days.

Related concepts

• Confirmation statement deadlines

• Registered Companies House due dates

Linked from

• Confirmation statement deadlines

• Registered Companies House due dates

Sources

• Companies Act 2006, section 441 — Section 441(1) and (2). Primary authority.

• Companies Act 2006 (Commencement No. 5, Transitional Provisions and Savings) Order 2007 — Schedule 4, paragraph 6. Primary authority.

• Companies Act 2006, section 442 — Section 442(3). Primary authority.

• Accounts and tax returns for private limited companies — Deadlines for filing your company accounts. Official guidance.

• Companies Act 2006, section 443 — Section 443(1) to (4). Primary authority.

• Companies Act 2006, section 442 — Section 442(1), (2)(a) and (6). Primary authority.

• Companies Act 2006, section 442 — Section 442(1), (2)(b) and (6). Primary authority.

• Companies Act 2006, section 442 — Section 442(4). Primary authority.

• Companies etc. (Filing Requirements) (Temporary Modifications) Regulations 2020 — Regulations 1, 2, 11 and 16; expiry and savings under CIGA 2020 section 39(8) and (9). Primary authority.

How sources are ranked

Knowledge version: sterling-knowledge@2026-09-11.7. Last checked 11 September 2026.