Companies House Software for Filing: What Directors Need

Companies House provides a free online filing service — WebFiling — that handles confirmation statements, annual accounts, and other submissions. It works, and it has built-in checks to help you avoid errors and rejection, plus a free email-reminder service (eReminders) you can sign up to. But those reminders arrive at fixed points (about 42 days before your accounts are due, and on the confirmation statement's due date), and each company's reminders are managed separately.

That gap between "can file" and "files correctly, on time, every time" is where filing software earns its value.

What Companies House WebFiling Does (and Doesn't)

WebFiling does:

• Submit confirmation statements (CS01) and annual accounts
• File director appointments, resignations, and address changes
• Process changes to your accounting reference date
• Provide filing receipts and confirmation
• Run built-in checks to help you avoid errors and rejection
• Send free email reminders (eReminders) when your accounts and confirmation statements are due, if you sign up

WebFiling doesn't:

• Send reminders on a schedule you choose — eReminders arrive at fixed points: about 42 days before your accounts are due, and on the confirmation statement's due date

WebFiling is a filing tool, not a compliance tool. It's the equivalent of having a post box — useful when you have something to send, and it will send a reminder if you sign up for eReminders, but it won't run your compliance calendar.

What Filing Software Should Do

Good filing software bridges the gap between knowing what to file and actually filing it correctly and on time. Here's what to look for:

Deadline Intelligence

The most valuable feature isn't filing — it's knowing when to file. Software should:

• Show all upcoming deadlines across all your companies in a single view
• Send reminders at multiple intervals (30, 14, 7, 1 day before each deadline)
• Distinguish between different filing types (accounts, confirmation statements, event-driven filings)
• Flag deadlines that are approaching while filings are still incomplete

Pre-Submission Validation

Companies House submissions can still be rejected for technical errors — for example, accounts with an unsigned balance sheet are returned for amendment. If a rejection happens near your deadline, you face an involuntary late filing and an automatic penalty.

Filing software should check for:

• Correct accounting reference date
• Company name matching Companies House records exactly
• Valid authentication code
• Required fields completed correctly
• Consistency between submitted data and existing company records

The cost of a rejected filing near a deadline can be significant — see our complete penalty guide for the exact amounts. Use the free late filing penalty calculator to see what a missed deadline would cost you. Confirmation statements work differently: there's no automatic late-filing penalty, but Companies House can issue a financial penalty, not filing is a criminal offence, and a confirmation statement overdue can trigger strike-off proceedings.

Identity Verification Tracking

From November 2025, confirmation statements can't be filed unless all directors have verified their identity. PSCs must verify too, but they provide their personal code separately rather than in the confirmation statement, within a 14-day window that "depends on your situation". Software should track:

• Which directors and PSCs have verified
• Which haven't, and what their deadline is
• Whether the personal code has been provided for each company

This is particularly important for directors across multiple companies — you verify once but must provide your code for each entity.

Multi-Company Management

A single-company director can manage deadlines with calendar reminders. But directors with 2+ companies — portfolio landlords with SPVs, directors of a trading company plus a holding company — need a centralised view.

Software should show every company's deadlines together in one dashboard. For a detailed evaluation framework, see our company secretarial software guide and our comparison of how to choose company secretarial software for a buyer-focused walkthrough.

The 2026 Software-Only Filing Change

HMRC's 'File your accounts and Company Tax Return' online service (often called CATO) closed on 31 March 2026. Corporation tax returns (CT600) must now be filed using commercial software or through an agent. Anyone who used it to file their Companies House accounts must now file them another way: WebFiling, software or paper. Companies House is next: from 1 April 2028 it will accept accounts only through commercial software (confirmation statements and other filings can stay on WebFiling). Government filing is clearly moving toward software intermediaries.

If you're setting up filing software for Companies House, consider whether the same tool (or an integrated workflow) can handle HMRC requirements as well.

How to Evaluate Filing Software

Before choosing a tool, answer these questions:

What are you filing? If you only file confirmation statements (your accountant handles accounts), your needs are simpler. If you handle everything yourself, you need broader coverage.

How many companies? One company can be managed with calendar reminders. Three or more needs a system.

What's your biggest risk? If you've had a filing rejected, pre-submission validation matters. If you've missed a deadline, reminder cadence matters. If you have unverified directors, identity verification tracking matters.

What does it cost vs the penalty? A late filing penalty starts at £150 and doubles for repeat offenders. Software that costs less than one penalty per year and prevents even one missed deadline pays for itself immediately.

Key Takeaways

• Companies House WebFiling files what you submit, with built-in checks and fixed-time email reminders — it doesn't manage your compliance calendar
• Filing software should track deadlines, validate submissions, and monitor identity verification
• Pre-submission validation prevents the technical rejections that cause involuntary late filings
• Multi-company directors need a single cross-company deadline view
• Since 1 April 2026, HMRC CT600 filing requires commercial software, and Companies House accounts go software-only from 1 April 2028 — review your full filing workflow

Sources

• Late filing penalties — GOV.UK
• Verify your identity for Companies House — GOV.UK
• When you need to verify your identity for Companies House — GOV.UK
• Companies House company search