Definition
A dormant company, for Companies House purposes, is one with no significant accounting transactions during its financial year. It still has to file annual accounts and a confirmation statement, but it can file simpler dormant accounts.
What counts as dormant
A company is dormant for Companies House if it has had no significant accounting transactions in the year. Paying Companies House fees, late filing penalties and the money paid for shares on incorporation do not count. Almost anything else, including bank interest, does.
What it still has to file
- Dormant accounts every year: a balance sheet with a section 480 audit-exemption statement and no profit and loss account.
- A confirmation statement every year.
- A Company Tax Return if HMRC sends a notice to file. HMRC’s test for dormant is different from Companies House’s.
Until 1 April 2028, a dormant company that has never traded can also file its accounts through Companies House WebFiling. Any company can file dormant accounts with software.
Read more: Filing dormant company accounts.