Companies House filings to be software only from 2027

Companies House filings to be software only from 2027

All company accounts will have to be filed at Companies House using commercial software from April 2027 as paper filings will no longer be allowed from this date.

This major change to filing requirements will see Companies House only accepting fully digitised company accounts which means all companies will have to use accounting software to submit account. This change will start with businesses with year ends of 31 July 2026 and is thought to affect over 400,000 companies who file using paper returns at present.

All company directors will be sent an email by Companies House setting out the changes, which stated: ‘We’re contacting you now to give you plenty of time to prepare – you’ll have one full accounting year, plus nine months, to make the switch (a total of 21 months).’

‘If you already file your accounts using software, you do not need to take any action.’

The email will also stress that ‘the move to software filing is a critical step in improving the accuracy and quality of data on the register by reducing errors and formatting issues. It will also speed up processing times and help Companies House detect and prevent fraud more effectively.’

Currently 91% of accounts are filed electronically using accounting software, leaving nearly 9% of companies still submitting paper accounts in 2023-24, although this figure has improved from just 85% before the pandemic, the latest available Companies House data has shown. There are currently 4.87m companies on the Companies House register, and the latest figures showed that 418,820 companies still file accounts on paper.

This change at present will not affect other Companies House filings such as confirmation statements and change of director appointments and notifications. 

This new requirement is part of the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023, designed to improve transparency and reduce fraud by making more financial information available to the public.  

At the end of paper accounts, Companies House has told all registered companies on the register about the move to digital filing with emails all sent out by 1 July, which advise that, under the new rules, all accounts filings made on and after 1 April 2027 must be filed using commercial software, which includes dormant accounts.

Companies House added: ‘This change will allow more efficient and secure filings for companies and will be a critical step towards improving the quality of the data on the register.’

‘Software-only accounts filing will create a single, cost-effective, sustainable and traceable way to file.’

To comply with these changes, all companies will need to find a suitable software product before web-based and paper filing options are no longer available, and here at Kennedys Accounting, we would be pleased to discuss different suitable software’s with you.

This move comes at the same time as small and micro companies have been told they will have to file profit and loss (P&L) and balance sheet information from the same date in April 2027, although further details have not yet been confirmed.

Companies House has already sent out letters to all companies affected informing them of the upcoming filing changes but was unable to confirm as yet whether there will be any exemptions, even if tightly limited from the digital filing requirement, as there are for Making Tax Digital (MTD) reporting at HMRC.