It is one of the shortest filings required by Companies House. It does not ask for financial details, profit figures, or tax submissions. But failing to file a confirmation statement can quietly cause major problems for your business.
Every limited company in the UK must submit a confirmation statement at least once every twelve months. It confirms basic company information, such as your registered office, shareholding structure, SIC code, and director details. On paper, it looks routine. But in practice, overlooking it can damage your credibility, disrupt your operations, and even lead to your company being struck off the register.
Here is why this simple task matters more than most realise and what happens when it gets missed.
The confirmation statement exists to verify that the public record of your company is accurate. It serves as a formal checkpoint with Companies House to ensure that your key company information is up to date and legally correct.
Unlike your annual accounts or corporation tax return, the confirmation statement is not about financial performance. But it carries legal weight and directly affects your company’s status on the register.
Even if nothing has changed since your last submission, you still need to file the statement. If changes have occurred, such as new shareholders, revised SIC codes, or a change to the registered office, those updates must be filed separately before the confirmation statement is submitted.
It is often treated as a low-priority admin task. But what it really does is maintain your legal standing, protect your reputation, and reassure suppliers, banks, clients, and HMRC that your company is properly managed.
The confirmation statement is due twelve months after your previous one was filed, with a fourteen-day window to submit. Many directors assume it aligns with the end of their financial year, but that is not always the case.
If you miss the filing window, several things can happen:
Companies House may begin proceedings to strike your company off the register
Your business bank account could be frozen pending company status updates
Credit agencies might flag your business as inactive or high risk
Clients or suppliers may refuse to work with you based on public record status
You may need to pay legal or professional fees to restore your company’s position
Even without a fine, the damage from appearing disorganised or inactive can be significant and long lasting.
The confirmation statement does not feel as urgent as tax filings or annual accounts. It is short, rarely changes much, and does not affect your financial obligations directly. That creates a false sense of security.
Common reasons businesses miss the deadline include:
Assuming they will receive a reliable reminder
Confusing the confirmation statement with other filings
Believing it is only necessary if something has changed
Delegating it internally but not assigning clear responsibility
We have seen multiple cases where a director thought their accountant had handled it, while the accountant assumed the client was managing it themselves. In the end, no one filed anything, and the company received a warning letter or strike-off notice weeks later.
Late filings affect more than your Companies House record. They signal to external parties that the business may be inactive, poorly run, or in trouble. That perception can be enough to stop someone from signing a contract, offering terms, or transferring funds.
Here are a few real examples we have encountered:
A growing company was removed from a supplier’s approved list after being flagged as overdue on Companies House
A client lost out on a tender opportunity because their business status showed as pending strike off during background checks
A founder’s personal mortgage application was delayed because the lender could not verify the status of their limited company
A bank requested updated company documents before continuing a credit facility
Each of these outcomes could have been avoided with a ten-minute filing.
Treating the confirmation statement as a formality can be risky. While it does not affect your tax position or require large amounts of data, it is still a statutory requirement. More importantly, it maintains your public legitimacy.
A company that fails to submit on time raises doubts. Whether those doubts come from a client, bank, or agency, they can impact your access to credit, your ability to close deals, and your reputation with regulators.
When you stay on top of this filing, it sends a different signal. It shows your company is active, properly managed, and operating with the attention to detail that serious stakeholders expect.
The good news is that this is one of the easiest filings to get right, as long as you plan for it.
Here are a few ways to avoid problems:
Record the due date and the fourteen-day filing window in your calendar
Make it part of your company’s internal compliance checklist
Assign a responsible person to track and submit it well before the deadline
Review your SIC code, shareholder register, and director details in advance
Work with a firm that monitors deadlines and handles submissions directly
These steps help you stay compliant without making it a distraction. If your business is growing or you are taking on outside investment, this filing becomes even more important to maintain trust with shareholders and regulators.
At Allied Financial Group, we include confirmation statement tracking and submission in our secretarial support. For many clients, it is one less deadline to worry about - and one more way to protect their business from disruption.
We monitor your deadlines, check your records, and ensure your filings are accurate and submitted well in advance. If there are changes that need to be registered first, we handle those too.
You get a clear, consistent record with Companies House. No scrambling. No late notices. No gaps in your company’s public profile.
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