A confirmation statement is the yearly filing that tells Companies House: this company is still here, and the details on the public register are correct (or here are the updates). It replaced the old annual return. Most UK limited companies must deliver one at least once every 12 months.
It is not your accounts and it is not your CT600. You can be up to date with HMRC and still be struck off if you ignore the confirmation statement.
What you are confirming
- The registered office and (where required) registered email address.
- Directors and secretaries — and, for new filings, identity verification / personal codes.
- People with significant control (PSCs) and the nature of their control.
- SIC codes (what the company does).
- Share capital and shareholder information where it applies.
- A statement that the company’s intended activities are lawful.
Why filing it is necessary
Companies House is a public register. Lenders, customers, HMRC and buyers rely on it. The confirmation statement is how the law keeps that register from going stale. If you do not file:
- The company can be struck off. Bank accounts are often closed. Contracts become messy.
- Directors can face late-filing consequences and, in serious cases, prosecution.
- Restoring a struck-off company is slower and more expensive than filing on time.
- You may also be out of date for identity verification, which blocks later filings.
When it is due
Your review period usually runs 12 months from incorporation (or from the last confirmation date). You can file early if you need to update the register, which starts a new 12-month period. File by the due date shown on the company’s Companies House record — do not guess.
What you need in order to file
- The company authentication code from Companies House.
- An 11-character personal code for each director who must verify identity (from GOV.UK One Login or an ACSP).
- Up-to-date officer, PSC, SIC and share details.
- The statutory filing fee plus any software or agent charge.
Personal codes are not optional extras on modern CS01 filings. If a director has not verified identity, get that done before you try to submit — the form will not save you.
HydraTax looks up the company on the public register, then walks you through authentication code, director personal codes and payment so the confirmation statement can go to Companies House in one sitting.
Confirmation statement vs accounts vs CT600
Think of three clocks. Companies House wants accounts (financial statements) and a confirmation statement (register details). HMRC wants a CT600 (corporation tax). Missing any one of them is a problem. Filing all three from one desk is how small companies stop dropping the CS01 because they thought “we already sent the accounts”.