For businesses
Confirmation statement overdue: what happens, and what customers see
A confirmation statement overdue at Companies House carries no automatic late-filing penalty, but it is an offence, it starts the clock towards compulsory strike-off, and it is visible to every customer who looks you up. In a SafeToPay check an overdue confirmation statement costs 5 points and blocks a green verdict; overdue accounts are worse and make the verdict red. Filing takes about 15 minutes online and costs £34.
Key facts
- A confirmation statement is due at least once every 12 months, within 14 days of the end of the review period; the online fee is £34 (Companies Act 2006, s.853A; Companies House fees from 1 May 2024).
- Failing to file is an offence by the company and every officer, punishable by a fine; Companies House may also begin compulsory strike-off (Companies Act 2006, s.853L and s.1000).
- Late accounts attract automatic penalties for a private company: £150 up to 1 month late, £375 up to 3 months, £750 up to 6 months, £1,500 over 6 months — doubled if accounts were also late the previous year (Companies House late filing penalties).
- Compulsory strike-off runs on letters, then a First Gazette notice, then dissolution about two months later if nobody objects; the company’s assets, including any bank balance, pass to the Crown as bona vacantia (Companies Act 2006, s.1000–1001; s.1012).
- In SafeToPay scoring: confirmation statement overdue = amber, −5, blocks green; accounts overdue, Gazette notice or status other than active = red (methodology v1.2).
What “overdue” means, filing by filing
Two annual filings can go overdue, and they carry very different consequences: the confirmation statement is a cheap, penalty-free filing whose absence is a warning sign, while accounts carry automatic fines and, when overdue, are treated by customers and checks as a serious problem.
| Confirmation statement (CS01) | Annual accounts | |
|---|---|---|
| What it is | Annual confirmation that the register is correct: officers, PSCs, registered office, SIC codes, share capital | The company’s financial statements for the year |
| Due | Within 14 days of the end of each 12-month review period | 9 months after the accounting year end (private company); 21 months after incorporation for the first set |
| Fee | £34 online | Free |
| Automatic penalty if late | None | £150 to £1,500 depending on delay; doubled for a second consecutive year |
| Offence? | Yes — company and officers; fine on conviction | Yes — directors; fine on conviction |
| What Companies House does | Reminder letters; may begin compulsory strike-off | Penalty notice; reminder letters; may begin compulsory strike-off |
| What the register shows | “Confirmation statement overdue” on the overview page, in red | “Accounts overdue” on the overview page, in red |
| SafeToPay treatment | Amber; −5; blocks green | Red — “Warning signs on the register” |
The confirmation statement is easy to forget and impossible to hide
Nothing changes in most years, so the filing feels pointless and slips; but the overview page of every company shows the next due date and, once passed, the word “overdue” in red at the top. It is the first thing a customer sees, before the accounts, before the directors. Companies House sends email reminders if the company has signed up for them; many small companies never have.
Overdue accounts are a different category
Accounts overdue means the penalty clock is already running, and to a customer it means the one document that would tell them whether the business is solvent is missing. Consumer guides list it alongside a Gazette notice as a reason not to pay a deposit, and a check treats it the same way. If both are overdue, file the accounts first.
Why a customer reads it as abandonment
To a customer with no accountancy background, an overdue filing does not read as “busy”; it reads as “nobody is looking after this company”, which is exactly what precedes most dissolutions. They are not wrong to think so: compulsory strike-off, the process by which Companies House removes companies that stop filing, begins precisely because a filing is overdue. A customer who has read what a strike-off notice means for a deposit knows that an overdue statement is the step before the notice.
The damage is out of proportion to the cause. A ten-year-old, solvent business with a strong record can be pushed out of green by a £34 form that was forgotten in a busy month — and the customer comparing two quotes will not know that. The rest of what they see on the record is covered in what customers see on Companies House.
In the report: “Confirmation statement overdue since 14 June 2026 (due date shown on the register).” One line, under Who you’re paying, next to the accounts status — and the reason the verdict band reads “A few points to check” instead of green.
The timeline from overdue to struck off
Strike-off is slow enough to stop at every stage, and fast enough that a company which ignores its post can be dissolved within a few months of the first missed deadline.
- Due date passes. The register shows “overdue”. No penalty for the confirmation statement; the accounts penalty accrues from day one.
- Reminder letters to the registered office. If the registered office is an accountant’s or agent’s address, make sure they forward them.
- Formal warning that Companies House intends to strike the company off unless it hears a reason not to, typically after two unanswered letters.
- First Gazette notice for compulsory strike-off. From this point the company is red in any check, and creditors, HMRC and customers can object.
- Dissolution, about two months after the notice if no objection is upheld. Bank accounts are frozen and balances pass to the Crown as bona vacantia; contracts and guarantees die with the company.
- Restoration is possible but slow and expensive — an administrative or court application, all outstanding filings and penalties, and months without a company.
Filing at any point before dissolution stops the process; after the Gazette notice, Companies House will normally discontinue the strike-off once the filings are made, and the “discontinued” filing then appears on the record.
Two records
Figures as filed on the register; names withheld.
Building contractor, formed 2019, still taking enquiries
Accounts went overdue; the confirmation statement followed; Companies House issued a First Gazette notice for compulsory strike-off; a creditor objected. The website was unchanged throughout and continued to quote for work. Every stage of the timeline above is visible in the filing history to anyone who looks, and a customer running a check saw the notice in the first line. The deposits taken during those months had no route back once the company was gone.
How the same company looked three months earlier
Accounts filed but the confirmation statement one month overdue, status still active, no Gazette notice. Score in the mid-60s, verdict amber, one line in the report about the overdue statement. At that point a £34 filing would have kept the company out of the strike-off process entirely — and the difference between this record and the one above is what a customer’s deposit was riding on.
Enter a website address, e.g. smithkitchens.co.uk
Fix it in 15 minutes, then keep it fixed
Filing the confirmation statement is the quickest improvement available to any company with an overdue flag, and the steps below stop it recurring.
- Log in to Companies House WebFiling with the company’s authentication code. If you have lost the code, request a new one; it is posted to the registered office within a few days.
- File the confirmation statement (CS01): confirm or update officers, PSCs, registered office, SIC codes and shareholders; pay £34. It shows on the register within 24 hours.
- Check the accounts due date on the same overview page and, if accounts are overdue too, file them first — the penalty grows with delay.
- Use the moment to fix the SIC code and the registered email; both are asked on the same form and both affect what customers and checks see.
- Sign up for Companies House email reminders and add both due dates to the calendar you actually read. If an accountant files for you, confirm in writing who is responsible for each deadline.
- Re-run the free check. Both the register and the report read live; the overdue line disappears with the filing.
Show a clean record, not a fixed one
A filing made on time never appears in a customer’s check at all; one made late leaves no mark once filed either — the register shows only the next due date. Businesses that keep both filings early can point customers to their record with confidence, and the free verified business badge does that from the website footer, linking to the full public report refreshed on every re-check. If a filing has been recorded wrongly at Companies House, correct it there and then tell us.
Enter a website address, e.g. smithkitchens.co.uk
Frequently asked questions
Is there a fine for a late confirmation statement?
No automatic penalty, unlike accounts. But not filing is a criminal offence by the company and its officers, and Companies House can begin compulsory strike-off. The practical cost is reputational: the register shows “overdue” to every customer who looks.
How long after the due date can I still file?
Any time until the company is dissolved. Filing stops the strike-off process at whatever stage it has reached; after a Gazette notice, Companies House will normally discontinue the strike-off once the outstanding filings are received.
Does an overdue confirmation statement affect my credit score?
Commercial credit agencies treat overdue filings as a negative signal and may lower a company’s score or limit while the flag is showing. Consumer-facing checks such as SafeToPay treat it as a reason to withhold green rather than as a red flag.
My accountant was supposed to file it. What now?
File it yourself today — the form takes 15 minutes and the responsibility is the directors’, not the accountant’s. Then agree in writing who handles each deadline. Reminder letters go to the registered office, so if that is the accountant’s address, make sure they are forwarded.
Will a late filing show on my record forever?
The filing itself appears in the history with its date, but the register shows only the next due date and no “was late” flag. A customer would have to compare dates in the filing history to notice; a check reads only the current status.
What is the difference between “confirmation statement overdue” and “accounts overdue” for a customer?
An overdue statement suggests the company is not being looked after; overdue accounts mean the customer cannot see whether the company is solvent and that penalties are already accruing. Consumer guidance and SafeToPay both treat overdue accounts as a reason not to pay a deposit; an overdue statement is a question to ask.
Sources
- GOV.UK — Confirmation statement guidance
- GOV.UK — Late filing penalties for accounts
- GOV.UK — Strike off, dissolution and restoration
- GOV.UK — Companies House fees from 1 May 2024
- Companies Act 2006, Part 24 — confirmation statements — legislation.gov.uk
- Companies Act 2006, Part 31 — dissolution and restoration — legislation.gov.uk
- SafeToPay methodology v1.2 — verdict rules