Companies House have this week confirmed how the reforms for Small and Micro Entities which were set out in the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act (ECCTA) 2003 will be implemented. This follows a pause in implementation last year over concerns about the unintended impact this may have on some small businesses.

What’s Changing

The planned reforms are going ahead, including:

• Requiring small and micro entities to file profit and loss accounts, as other companies do
• Companies of all sizes having to file accounts to Companies House via commercial software (IE the retirement of the Companies House “WebFiling” service)
• A few other small technical amendments that are of limited consequence

However given the concerns that were raised, and the length of time that the decisions were delayed, the following changes to how the implementation is being carried out:

• Small and Micro Entities while required to file a profit and loss account to Companies House will be able to opt out of having this appear on the public record. Details of how this will work will be confirmed in due course (effectively a delay while Companies House and Software Companies work out the interface to record this)
• Postponed implementation timescale: Originally these changes were due to come into force on 1 April 2027. This has now been delayed by a year to 1 April 2028.
• Companies House have confirmed that their existing WebFiling and paper filing routes will be closed for accounts filings from 1 April 2028, but will remain open for other statutory filings.

What You Need To Do

The requirement to file through software means that if you are currently filing the accounts for your company yourself, you’ve got 2 options:

1. Use an accountant to file (the easiest option); or
2. Continue to do it yourself, which will mean:
   1. Buying in software that will prepare and file final accounts (this is often separate or at a higher cost than any bookkeeping software you may already have)
   2. Applying for a presenter account with Companies House
   3. Making sure that you understand the changes that are required, preparing a complete and correct profit and loss statement, and completing various other requirements, like preparing a directors report.

Practical Tips

• Software companies will probably start bombarding you with “Be 2028 Ready” emails, ignore these for now until the changes and requirements have been better fleshed out, and Companies House have confirmed how software companies can complete all of the requirements.
• If you’re currently filing your accounts yourself, seriously consider speaking to an accountant. You don’t have to pay for bookkeeping if you’re doing this yourself, just for the preparation and filing of your accounts. Contact Us if you’d like to start a conversation about your requirements.
• Don’t panic! You’ve got nearly 2 years before the new requirements come into force, but this is the right time to be thinking about it. You can treat your next filing as a trial run, so you know what you have to do for the one after.