Company records and filings
The filing is small. Stale company records are not.
Use the live Companies House register as the starting point, then connect each filing to the company records and people behind it. Dates, fees and identity rules change, so the official service wins over a saved checklist.
Open the live record
Start with what the public register says today.
Company name, number and status
Confirm you are looking at the correct entity. Similar names, dormant companies and old management companies can sit around the same building.
Directors and people with significant control
Compare the live register with the company's own records. A director, member and PSC are different roles and do not always overlap.
Registered office and registered email
Check that the company can receive official communications and that the email route is controlled. The registered email is not shown on the public register.
Accounts, statements and filings
Read the due dates, filing history, charges and submitted documents. A filed form is evidence of what was delivered, not proof that every underlying record is correct.
The filing cycle
Separate annual work from changes that need filing when they happen.
Accounts
Use the accounting reference date and live due date. The correct accounts route depends on the company and its circumstances.
Confirmation statement
Review the registered information and file the statement for the review period. From 1 February 2026, Companies House lists the digital filing fee as £50.
Officers, office and company details
Appointments, resignations, registered-office changes and other events may need their own filing. Do not wait for the next confirmation statement unless the official route says you can.
Keep the underlying records
Minutes, resolutions, the register of members, articles and transaction records remain company records even where related information appears at Companies House.
Identity verification
Treat the personal code as a controlled credential.
Check each person's due route
Identity verification became a legal requirement from 18 November 2025. Existing and newly appointed directors and PSCs do not all provide their codes in the same way or on the same date.
One person may need to act for more than one role
A director who is also a PSC must provide the personal code separately for each role using the route Companies House specifies.
Do not share the personal code casually
Keep a record of who may use it, for which filing and through which authorised route. Treat the company authentication code with the same care.
Use the live due dates
Companies House guidance and the public register show the applicable timing. Do not infer a deadline from somebody else's birth month or confirmation date.
Sources for this page
Open the law and guidance yourself.
View company status, due dates, officers, filing history and documents without charge.
↗Official guidanceLife of a companyCompanies House guidance on records, event-driven filings, meetings and resolutions.
↗Current changeIdentity verification timingCurrent Companies House guidance for directors, PSCs and other roles.
↗Current feeCompanies House fees from February 2026The official notice listing the £50 digital confirmation-statement fee and other changed fees.
↗Links and current-law position checked 18 August 2026. Apply the governing documents, building facts and current law to the case in front of you.
