CICs: Know your filing deadlines — before HMRC and Companies House know you missed them!

Running a Community Interest Company is rewarding work — but missing a filing deadline can land you with automatic fines, penalty charges, and in the worst cases, your CIC being struck off the register entirely. The good news? Every deadline is predictable. Diarise them now and you'll never be caught out.

 The three deadlines every CIC must track

There are three separate filing obligations for a CIC, each with its own deadline and its own penalty regime. Filing one does NOT satisfy the others — they are completely independent.]

Filing	Filed With	Deadline	Penalty for Missing
Confirmation Statement (CS01)	Companies House	Within 14 days of your statement date (12-month anniversary of incorporation or last filing)	Risk of strike-off proceedings
Annual Accounts + CIC34 Report	Companies House	9 months after your financial year-end	Automatic financial penalties starting at £15
Corporation Tax Return (CT600)	HMRC	12 months after your accounting period end	£100 fine from day one, then £10/day after 3 months
Corporation Tax Payment	HMRC	9 months and 1 day after your accounting period end	Interest charges on unpaid amounts

Late Filing Penalties — It Adds Up Fast Companies House — Late Accounts

·        Less than 1 month late: £150

·        1–3 months late: £375

·        3–6 months late: £750

·        More than 6 months late: £1,500

·        ⚠️ Penalties double if you miss deadlines two years in a row

HMRC — Late Corporation Tax Return

·        1 day late: £100

·        3 months late: additional £10 per day (up to 90 days)

·        6 months late: 10% of tax due

·        12 months late: another 10% of tax due

Confirmation Statement — Companies House

No automatic financial fine, but late or missing filings mean your CIC appears overdue on the public register — damaging credibility with funders and partners

·Persistent non-filing leads to strike-off proceedings, which can result in the CIC being dissolved

 Your Action Plan

1.      Find your incorporation date — log in to Companies House and check. This sets your Confirmation Statement deadline.

2.     Know your year-end date — then count forward 9 months (accounts) and 12 months (CT600).

3.      Set calendar reminders now — at least 6 weeks before each deadline to give yourself preparation time.

4.     Remember the CIC34 — this community interest report must be filed alongside your accounts; it is unique to CICs and is a legal obligation.]

5.      File even when there's nothing to pay — HMRC penalties apply even if your CIC owes zero Corporation Tax.

 Reminder: CICs have an extra filing layer

Unlike ordinary limited companies, CICs must also submit a CIC34 Community Interest Report with their annual accounts. This report explains how your activities benefited the community and includes details about directors' pay and any dividends. Miss it and your accounts filing is incomplete.

Stay compliant. Stay credible. Your community deserves a CIC that's here for the long run.

Share this with a fellow CIC director who needs a reminder! 👇