What is my company responsible for?
Every limited company has three standing duties. VAT, PAYE and EORI come on top, only if you register. Tick what your company is registered for and see what each one means and what you have to do.
Nothing ticked yet. These are the duties every limited company has.
What your company must do
Corporation Tax
Every companyTax your company pays to HMRC on its profits. You do not get a bill, so you have to work it out and report it yourself.
What you must do
- Keep company and accounting records
- Prepare a Company Tax Return to work out the tax
- Pay the tax, or report that you have nothing to pay, by your deadline
- File the return even if you made a loss or owe nothing
How often: For every accounting period
Annual accountsAnnual accounts (statutory accounts)
Every companyA yearly set of accounts, prepared from the company’s records at the end of its financial year.
What you must do
- Prepare the accounts: a balance sheet, a profit and loss account and notes
- Have a director sign the balance sheet
- Send copies to the shareholders, to Companies House and to HMRC with your Company Tax Return
How often: Every financial year
Confirmation statement
Every companyA yearly check that the details Companies House holds about your company are right.
What you must do
- Check your registered office, directors, secretary, SIC code and people with significant control
- Check the share details, if your company has shares
- File the confirmation statement with Companies House, online or by post. There is a fee
How often: At least once every 12 months
What you do as a person, not the company
This one belongs to you, not to the company. The company never files it.
Self AssessmentSelf Assessment tax return
Your own dutyYour own tax return as a person, not the company’s. It is for income that is not taxed automatically, such as dividends. Whether a director needs one depends on their own income, and you must send one if HMRC asks you to.
What you must do
- Check whether you need to send a tax return
- If you do and have not sent one before, tell HMRC by 5 October by registering for Self Assessment
- File your return after the tax year ends on 5 April
- Pay your bill by 31 January
How often: Once a year, if you need one
VAT, PAYE and EORI in plain words
- VAT (Value Added Tax): A tax on sales. You charge it to your customers, pay it to HMRC, and can reclaim the VAT on what you buy for the business.
- PAYE (Pay As You Earn): How the company takes Income Tax and National Insurance off pay and passes it to HMRC. You need it to pay a salary, including your own as a director.
- EORI (Economic Operators Registration and Identification number): A number that identifies your business when you move goods between Great Britain and other countries.
None of these is automatic. You take on each one when you register for it, so a new company starts with the first three duties only. This page is a plain-words guide, not advice. Where it matters, the GOV.UK page it follows is linked.
Questions people ask
What does every UK limited company have to do?
Three things: pay Corporation Tax and file a Company Tax Return, prepare annual accounts and send them to Companies House, shareholders and HMRC, and file a confirmation statement with Companies House at least once every 12 months.
Is Self Assessment a company duty?
No. Self Assessment is a personal tax return. It belongs to the person, not the company. Whether a director needs one depends on their own income, for example dividends or other income that is not taxed automatically. You must also send one if HMRC asks you to.
Do I have to register for VAT?
You must register once your taxable turnover goes over the VAT threshold. You can also choose to register before that. GOV.UK shows the current threshold on its register for VAT page.
Do I need PAYE if I am the only director?
If the company pays you or anyone else a salary, expenses or benefits, you must register the company as an employer. The company then takes Income Tax and National Insurance from the pay and passes it to HMRC.
What is an EORI number?
An Economic Operators Registration and Identification number. It identifies your business when you move goods between Great Britain and other countries, or between Great Britain and Northern Ireland. If your company does not move goods, you do not need one.
Can I hand all this to an accountant?
You can hire people to do these jobs day to day, but the directors are still legally responsible for the company’s records, accounts and performance.
Sources
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