Companies House 2028: A Readiness Checklist
From 1 April 2028, UK companies file accounts through commercial software, in iXBRL. For a multi-entity group this is a production change, not a submission change. Ten checks tell you how ready you are, and whether you get the most from your investment. Get the full annotated checklist and a printable scorecard.
The headline is simple: from that date you file through software, or you do not file. The web and paper routes close, abridged accounts go, and the change reaches every UK entity you file for. These ten checks are what "ready" looks like, split into the part that is not optional and the work that makes your new software pay. Score them honestly and you will know where your group stands.
The part that is not optional
You cannot file without these.
- Companies House filing-capable software, chosen or in place
- Tagging scope confirmed, not assumed
- A software decision date, worked back from your first in-scope filing
Getting ready to use your new solution well
These decide whether the software saves you time or just moves the effort around.
- Every UK entity in view
- A statutory accounts production path you could describe
- A chart of accounts mapped consistently across entities
- Source data you can trust
- Reliable balances and adjustments, not rebuilt each period
- Consolidation and elimination adjustments you can reproduce
- A standard set of entity accounts across the group
How to read your answers
- 9 or 10 in place: you are ahead of most groups; the remaining prize is efficiency, the same accounts produced faster and with less risk.
- 6 to 8: typical, and fixable well within the runway, if you start in a quiet period. Make the software decision first, then get your data ready.
- 5 or fewer: start with two things, choose the software and map how your accounts are actually produced today. Everything else builds on those.
Common questions
What changes at Companies House in 2028?
From 1 April 2028, UK companies must file annual accounts through commercial software, in iXBRL format. The web and paper filing routes close, abridged accounts go, small companies and micro-entities file a profit and loss account, and audit-exemption claims need a strengthened directors’ statement.
Who does it affect?
Every UK entity you file for, not just the large trading ones. That includes companies currently filing abridged accounts or by web filing, and the dormant and small entities nobody usually thinks about. The change lands right across the group.
Is it just a filing change?
For a multi-entity group it is a production change, not a submission change. From April 2028 you file through software or you do not file, so the readiness is really about how your accounts are produced, not just how they are submitted.
Does this cover statutory accounts and accounts production?
Yes. The 2028 change is about how your statutory accounts are filed, and for a multi-entity group it is really a statutory accounts production question: getting the accounts prepared, tagged in iXBRL and filed through software. Whether your team calls it statutory reporting or accounts production, this checklist covers the readiness that matters.
When should we act?
Work back from your first filing under the new regime through go-live, training, implementation, procurement and the software decision. The software decision is the one check you cannot leave open, and starting in a quiet period rather than against the deadline is far easier.
Get the annotated checklist + printable scorecard
The page above lists the ten checks. The download gives you the full detail and guidance behind each one and a printable scorecard to score your group and run it past your team. We will email you a secure link.
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