Miss your accounts filing dates after 1st February 2009 and it will cost you more than you think!

New Deadlines for Submission of Company Accounts

The filing period for accounts beginning on or after 6th April 2008 will have to be filed within 9 months this was previously 10 months.

Accounts must be filed within 21 months from date of incorporation this was previously 22 months.

Late Filing Penalties from 1 February 2009

Companies House have confirmed that the late filing penalty regime will change with effect from 1st February 2009.

For late filing penalties levied up to 31st January 2009, the penalties are:

How late are the accounts delivered	Private Co / LLP
Not more than 3 months	£100
More than 3 months but not more than 6 months	£250
More than 6 months but not more than 12 months	£500
More than 12 months	£1,000

The main changes being introduced are:

* All penalties to be increased to take account of inflation since 1992

* A faster rate of increase in penalties for companies/LLPs who file more than one month late

* A doubling of the penalty for any company/LLP which files late for the 2nd successive year.

For late filing penalties levied from 1st February 2009, the new penalty table is:

How late are the accounts delivered	Private Co / LLP
Not more than 1 month	£150
More than 1 month but not more than 3 months	£375
More than 3 months but not more than 6 months	£750
More than 6 months	£1,500

You will note the increased penalties as well as the faster rate of increase in the penalties.

In addition to the above, failure to comply with filing requirements in relation to the previous financial year (that began after 6th April 08 for Companies and 1 October 2008 for LLPS), the penalty will be double that shown in the new table.

It is now more important than ever to ensure that your Accounts are lodged with Companies House in time!