Companies House strike-off notice for overdue accounts: what to do

In short: Companies House starts a compulsory strike-off when it believes a company has stopped trading, often because accounts or a confirmation statement are overdue. It writes twice, then publishes a Gazette notice, and the company can be struck off and dissolved 2 months later. To stop it, reply and file the overdue documents at once (Companies House guidance). Taxley prepares the overdue Company Tax Return (CT600) with micro-entity accounts for £49.95 and files the accounts at Companies House once the return is paid and the accounts are finished.

Take the 30-second check to see whether Taxley fits your company, or work out your own dates with the Corporation Tax deadline calculator.

Key facts (checked on 10 October 2026)

Why does Companies House strike off a company for overdue accounts?

Because missing accounts suggest the company has stopped trading. Section 1000 of the Companies Act 2006 lets the registrar strike off a company it reasonably believes is not carrying on business, and Companies House says it may form that view when accounts or a confirmation statement haven't arrived, or there are no directors (Companies House: Striking off).

Compulsory strike-off is the registrar's own action, unlike a voluntary strike-off on form DS01, covered in our guide to the final CT600 when closing a limited company. A private company has 9 months after the end of its accounting reference period to deliver its accounts (Companies Act 2006 s.442). Missing that date brings an automatic late filing penalty first; the strike-off process can follow if the accounts stay missing and the letters go unanswered. Companies House also says not filing accounts or confirmation statements is a criminal offence for which directors can be fined personally (Companies House: Late filing penalties).

How quickly can a company be struck off after missing its accounts deadline?

In as little as about 3 months from Companies House's first letter, if nobody answers. Section 1000 gives 14 days to answer the first letter, up to 14 more days before a second, 14 days to answer that, then 2 months after the Gazette notice before strike-off (Companies Act 2006 s.1000). The law sets no date for the first letter.

Worked timeline. Larkfield Joinery Ltd, a fictional private company that isn't filing its first accounts, has a year end of 31 March 2025, so its accounts were due at Companies House by 31 December 2025, 9 months later (Companies Act 2006 s.442). Three dates are assumptions, because Companies House chooses when to write and publish; the second letter goes on the latest day section 1000 allows.

The arithmetic: 2 February plus 14 days is 16 February; plus 14 more is 2 March, as February 2026 has 28 days; plus 14 is 16 March. From a notice dated 24 March 2026, 2 months runs to 24 May 2026. The company is dissolved only when the registrar publishes a further notice that its name has been struck off (Companies Act 2006 s.1000(5)-(6)). Companies House may take longer at any stage, but nothing in the law makes it wait, so treat the first letter as urgent.

What happens when a company is struck off and dissolved?

The company stops existing, and everything it owned passes to the Crown as bona vacantia, meaning ownerless goods. Companies House says the company's bank account is frozen, can't receive payments, and any money in it passes to the Crown (Companies House: Assets and bank account of a dissolved company).

Section 1012 of the Companies Act 2006 vests all property and rights held by the company immediately before dissolution in the Crown, including leasehold property, unless the company is later restored (Companies Act 2006 s.1012). Dissolution doesn't wipe out what the people behind the company owe: section 1000(7) keeps the liability of every director, managing officer and member (Companies Act 2006 s.1000(7)). Companies House also says HMRC can't process or issue refunds to a dissolved company (Companies House: Before you apply). Where misconduct is reported, a director of a dissolved company can be investigated and disqualified (GOV.UK: Director information hub).

How do you stop a compulsory strike-off, step by step?

Reply to Companies House promptly and deliver every overdue document as soon as possible: Companies House names exactly those two actions for a company it believes is no longer in business (Companies House: Stop your company being struck off). Six steps cover it, and the last checks the register.

Step 1: Find out exactly what is overdue

Look up the company on the Companies House register and note the date the next accounts were due, whether the confirmation statement is overdue, and whether a Gazette notice already appears in the filing history. Companies House places a copy of the Gazette notice on the company's public record (Companies House: Striking off). If several years of accounts are missing, list each year end, oldest first.

Step 2: Reply to the Companies House letter

Answer the letter straight away and say the company is still carrying on business. Section 1000 gives only 14 days to answer each of the registrar's two letters before a Gazette notice can follow (Companies Act 2006 s.1000(2)). Keep a copy of your reply and the date you sent it. If the registered office address no longer reaches the directors, update it, because that is where the letters go.

Step 3: Get the authentication code if you don't have it

Online filing, by commercial software or Companies House's own service, needs the company's 6-character authentication code, which acts as an officer's signature. Companies House posts it to the registered office and says it can take up to 10 working days, so request it on day one (GOV.UK: Company authentication codes). Our guide to a lost Companies House authentication code covers the request.

Step 4: File the overdue accounts, oldest first

Prepare and deliver every set of overdue accounts, starting with the earliest year, because each year's balance sheet carries into the next. A micro-entity or small company can file simpler accounts (GOV.UK: Micro-entities, small and dormant companies). Our guide to filing company accounts at Companies House online shows the routes. Companies House can't accept accounts that don't meet the Companies Act, and corrected accounts that arrive late still get a penalty, so fix any rejection the same day.

Step 5: File the confirmation statement and deal with penalties

If the confirmation statement is overdue, file it on Companies House's online service, because a missing confirmation statement is also grounds for strike-off. Then pay the automatic late filing penalty for each late set of accounts, or appeal if something outside your control caused the delay (GOV.UK: Penalties for late filing). Companies House doesn't collect a penalty while it considers an appeal.

Step 6: Check the register shows everything you filed

Check the company's record a few days later: the filing history should list each set of accounts and the confirmation statement, and the next accounts date should have moved on. If a Gazette notice was published, keep checking until the strike-off date in it has passed, and contact Companies House before that date if anything is missing.

Can you object to a strike-off or get more time?

Yes, an interested party such as a shareholder or creditor can object once the Gazette notice is out, with supporting evidence (GOV.UK: Object to a limited company being struck off). An extension of the accounts deadline is different: it can only be applied for before the deadline passes, so it can't rescue accounts that are already overdue.

The Gazette notice gives the strike-off date, 2 months from the date in the notice for a company that seems no longer in business, and Companies House asks for an objection at least 2 weeks before it (Companies House: Object to a company's dissolution). Supporting documents must be less than 6 months old, show the company's full name and be under 4MB. A successful objection holds off the strike-off for 6 months; more time needs proof of progress, such as legal action started to recover a debt. From 1 December 2026 objections go through the Make an objection online service only, with a Companies House account, not by email (Companies House news). For accounts not yet overdue, an extension is granted only for exceptional reasons (Companies House: Late filing penalties).

Which situation are you in, and what should you do?

Your deadline depends on how far the process has gone. Before a Gazette notice, the 14-day answer periods matter most; after it, the strike-off date in the notice; after dissolution, the 6-year restoration limit. The table matches each situation to Companies House's route and its time limit.

The court route is wider than administrative restoration: former directors, members, creditors and others with an interest can apply, generally within 6 years of dissolution and at any time for a personal injury claim (Companies House: Restoration by an order of court). Companies House suggests independent legal advice before applying to court.

Do late filing penalties still apply if the strike-off is stopped?

Yes. Filing the overdue documents can stop the strike-off, but not the penalty: a private company pays £150 up to 1 month late, £375 up to 3 months, £750 up to 6 months and £1,500 after that, doubled if the previous year's accounts were also late (GOV.UK: Penalties for late filing).

Filing early is far cheaper than restoring later. For Larkfield Joinery, accounts due on 31 December 2025 and delivered on 16 March 2026 are more than 1 month but not more than 3 months late, so the penalty is £375, assuming the previous year's accounts were on time. If the company is instead dissolved on 2 June 2026 and restored later, Companies House normally disregards the dissolved period, so the same accounts count as about 5 months late, more than 3 but not more than 6, and the penalty is £750 (Companies House: Outstanding accounts and late filing penalties). Add the £341 restoration fee and, if money in the bank passed to the Crown, a £64 waiver letter: £750 + £341 + £64 = £1,155, against £375 (Companies House: RT01).

How do you restore a company that has already been struck off?

A former director or member can apply to Companies House for administrative restoration within 6 years of dissolution, if the company was carrying on business when it was struck off. Send form RT01 with the £341 fee, every outstanding document and penalty, and a bona vacantia waiver letter if the company held assets (Companies House: RT01).

Section 1025 sets four conditions, all of which must be met: the company was in business when struck off; the Crown consented in writing where property had vested as bona vacantia; the documents needed to bring the register up to date were delivered; and outstanding accounts penalties, and Companies Acts fines owed by the applicant or continuing directors, are paid (Companies Act 2006 s.1025). Companies House says the waiver letter costs £64 and the application must be posted (Companies House: RT01). A restored company is treated as never dissolved, and pays no penalty for accounts whose filing period ended while it was dissolved (Companies Act 2006 s.1028). Directors who applied for voluntary strike-off can't use this route and need a court order.

Can Taxley file the overdue accounts that stop a strike-off?

Yes, when the accounts are prepared in Taxley with that year's return. Taxley (taxley.co.uk), UK online software that prepares and files the Company Tax Return (CT600) with HMRC and the annual accounts with Companies House, files micro-entity, small, abridged and dormant accounts there at no extra cost, once the return is paid and the accounts are finished.

You save the company's 6-character Companies House authentication code once in the company details, then press "File accounts at Companies House" on the filing page; without a saved code the button stays disabled. Before sending, Taxley checks the register. If Companies House is still waiting for an earlier year's accounts, Taxley asks you to file those first, and it won't send a second copy for a period Companies House already has. The fee per return is £49.95 with micro-entity accounts, £139 with small-company accounts and £9.50 for a dormant company, and it covers the Companies House filing. Taxley doesn't file confirmation statements, strike-off objections or restoration applications. It also doesn't file accounts you uploaded instead of Taxley's, accounts for a period Companies House already has that weren't filed through Taxley, or first accounts when the return's period doesn't start on the date of incorporation. Taxley is software, not legal or tax advice. Take the 30-second check to see whether Taxley fits your company, or see the prices.

Frequently asked questions

Can Companies House strike off a company that is still trading?

Yes, if it doesn't answer. The registrar acts on reasonable cause to believe the company isn't in business, and an unanswered letter is enough to move to a Gazette notice (Companies Act 2006 s.1000(3)). A company trading when struck off can apply for administrative restoration within 6 years.

Does a strike-off cancel the company's debts?

No. Section 1000(7) keeps the liability of every director, managing officer and member as if the company hadn't been dissolved, and the court can still wind it up (Companies Act 2006 s.1000(7)). A creditor owed money can also apply to the court to restore it.

Can the directors use the company's bank account after dissolution?

No. Companies House says the account is frozen from dissolution, can't receive payments, and its balance passes to the Crown (Companies House: Bank account). Getting it back means restoring the company, with the Crown's written consent.

Is the Company Tax Return deadline the same as the accounts deadline?

No. The CT600 goes to HMRC 12 months after the accounting period ends, later than the 9 months Companies House allows, and late returns bring HMRC's own penalties (GOV.UK: Company Tax Returns). Our guide to what happens if you file your CT600 late explains them.

General information, not personalised legal, tax or accounting advice.