In this article, we’ll detail what a Confirmation Statement is and everything you, or your small business, needs to know!
What is a Confirmation Statement?
The Confirmation Statement, or CS01, is a document filed online or by post that reports certain information about your company to Companies House. It was introduced in June 2016 as a replacement for the Annual Return.
While the Annual Return required you to fill out certain information about your company (annually, as suggested in the name), the Confirmation Statement was designed so that if that information does not change from one year to the next, you simply ‘confirm’ the previous year’s data, rather than re-enter it.
The kind of details the Confirmation Statement reports relate to the company’s directors and secretaries, registered address, shares and shareholders, and nature of business.
The Confirmation Statement exists so that Companies House have accurate, up-to-date details regarding your company.
Who Needs to File a Confirmation Statement, and When?
Companies House requires all companies and Limited Liability Partnerships (LLPs) registered in the UK, including those dormant and non-trading, to file a Confirmation Statement.
This filing needs to be completed at least every 12 months.
What Do You Need to Do Before Filing a Confirmation Statement?
The Confirmation Statement is easiest to fill out online, but before doing so, you will need to register for online filing. This registration will provide you with your needed password and authentication code.
Though the Confirmation Statement’s purpose is to inform Companies House about your company, some of the details the statement requires cannot be changed at the time of filling it out.
You cannot change these details within the Confirmation Statement:
- Directors and secretaries
- People with significant control (PSC)
- The company’s registered office address
To report changes of information regarding these details you must do so prior to the filing of the Confirmation Statement, via the Companies House WebFiling service.
You can change these details within the Confirmation Statement:
- Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) code
- Statement of capital
- Trading status of shares
- Exemption from keeping a PSC register
- Shareholder information
A SIC code is a code that provides a description of your company’s nature of business. A full list of these codes can be found here.
Make sure to register for online filing to acquire your password and authentication code. Before filing your Confirmation Statement, you should ensure all details that need to be changed prior to the filing have been changed, and that you have details relevant to the Confirmation Statement, such as your SIC code/s, to hand.
How Do You Fill Out a Confirmation Statement?
The Confirmation Statement can be filed online here or by post here.
Filing your statement online will cost you £13 to file and filing your statement by post will cost you £40. You are only charged once every 12 months, so additional filings of the CS01 within 12 months won’t cost you extra. Your payment date is 12 months from the day your company incorporated, or 12 months from the last date you paid the annual fee.
Not only will filing your statement online save you £27 on your annual fee, but it also saves you time, as existing information is pre-filled, ready for you to confirm if correct.
What Happens if You File Late?
Regardless of your payment date, you are required to file a new Confirmation Statement within 12 months of your last Confirmation Statement filing. You are able to file earlier than this, at any time. However, if you are more than 14 days later than 12 months, your Confirmation Date is considered late.
Late filings, or failure to file, is a criminal offense. You won’t incur any fines for late filings, but your company or LLP may be struck from the register, and your company and its officers could face prosecution.
Companies House offer a helpful email reminder service to ensure you don’t forget to file your Confirmation Statement on time.
Filing your Confirmation Statement in a timely manner is a legal duty, so it’s vital to remember to do so. Even if your company’s details haven’t changed since your last filing, you still need to confirm as such.
Summary
The Confirmation Statement is a document filed, either online or by post, to Companies House. The statement lets them know the most important details about your company.
Most major detail changes need to be reported to Companies House prior to the filing of the Confirmation Statement, though some changes can be made during the filing.
All companies and Limited Liability Partnerships (LLPs) registered in the UK need to file a Confirmation Statement. This is required at least every 12 months, or you could face prosecution.
The fee for the Confirmation Statement is £13 (online) or £40 (post), and this is charged annually, regardless of if you file multiple confirmation statements in a 12 month period.
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