# Companies House late filing penalty calculator, and the confirmation statement date > Enter the accounts deadline and the filing date to see the penalty band and the doubling rule, plus the confirmation statement filing date and fee. - Page to cite: https://aeolookup.com/accountants/companies-house-late-filing-penalty-calculator/ - Publisher: AEO Lookup (https://aeolookup.com/) - Section: Accountancy practices, Deadlines and penalties - Published 1 October 2026 - Key fact: Companies House's penalty page was updated on 16 January 2026; a private company filing 40 days late pays £375, and £750 if last year's accounts were late too, and the page lists "reliance on an accountant" among reasons an appeal will not succeed on its own. - Sources: GOV.UK "Late filing penalties" (Companies House, updated 16 January 2026) and "Confirmation statement guidance", both read 2026-10-01. Late accounts cost the client money and the practice the relationship, because Companies House charges automatically and the client's first question is why nobody warned them. The calculator shows the penalty for any lateness, and the confirmation statement date alongside it, because the two are usually chased together. **Free tool on the page:** Companies House late filing penalty and confirmation statement date calculator. It runs in the browser at https://aeolookup.com/accountants/companies-house-late-filing-penalty-calculator/#tool and asks for no sign-up. ## The scale | How late | Private company or LLP | Public company | |---|---|---| | Not more than 1 month | £150 | £750 | | More than 1 month, not more than 3 | £375 | £1,500 | | More than 3 months, not more than 6 | £750 | £3,000 | | More than 6 months | £1,500 | £7,500 | The bands run from the filing deadline, and the penalty is set by the date the accounts arrive, so a set that is one day into the next band costs the full step. The calculator shows the date the next band starts, which is the date to beat. ## The doubling rule If accounts are filed late in two successive financial years, the penalty for the second year is doubled. A private company that was late last year and is 40 days late this year pays £750, not £375. For a client who has been late two years running, the third year doubles again on the same scale. This rule is the one to raise with a client who treats the £150 as the cost of doing business. ## Appeals almost never work Companies House's page says an appeal succeeds only in exceptional circumstances, and the registrar has very limited discretion. The list of reasons that will not succeed on their own includes: the company is dormant, the company cannot afford to pay, the accountant was ill, the client relied on the accountant, and the company is in financial difficulty. In practice, a penalty appeal is not a tool; the filing date is. ## The confirmation statement Every company files at least one confirmation statement every 12 months. The review period ends on the anniversary of incorporation or of the last statement's review date, and the statement can be filed up to 14 days after that. The calculator gives the file-by date from the review date. The fee is £50 online and £110 on paper. Not filing can bring a fine of up to £5,000 and strike-off. Since identity verification became a legal requirement on 18 November 2025, the confirmation statement also carries each director's Companies House personal code and a confirmation that every director has verified. A statement cannot be filed for a company whose directors have not. Our guide on [Companies House identity verification for accountants](https://aeolookup.com/accountants/companies-house-identity-verification-accountants/) covers what the practice has to do for each client. ## The deadline itself Private companies file accounts within nine months of the accounting reference date, public companies within six, and a company's first accounts have their own rule. The calculator asks for the deadline rather than working it out, because the practice's software already holds it and because extensions, shortened periods and first-year accounts all move it. Put the date Companies House shows for the company, not the one you remember. Changing the accounting reference date to buy time works once in five years for most companies and must be done before the deadline, not after. It is a last resort, not a plan. ## Keeping it off the penalty scale The practice's deadline list is the defence. Our [MTD deadline checker](https://aeolookup.com/accountants/mtd-income-tax-quarterly-deadline-checker/) covers the quarterly dates, and the [records request letter maker](https://aeolookup.com/accountants/records-request-letter-template-accountants/) gives you the letters that get the records in before the accounts are late in the first place. This is general information, not legal or tax advice. ## Short answers from this page **What is the Companies House penalty for late accounts?** For a private company: £150 up to one month late, £375 for one to three months, £750 for three to six months and £1,500 beyond six months. The penalty doubles if the previous year's accounts were late as well, so 40 days late costs £375, or £750 the second year running. Relying on an accountant is listed among the reasons an appeal will not succeed by itself. --- ![](https://aeolookup.com/img/d/owner-line.png) General information for UK small firms, not legal, tax or financial advice.