Filleted vs abridged accounts: what small companies file

In short: Filleted accounts are full small-company accounts delivered to Companies House without the profit and loss account or directors' report. Abridged accounts use shortened formats, show fewer lines and need every member's consent (GOV.UK: Micro-entity, small and dormant company accounts). HMRC always gets the accounts as prepared for members, profit and loss included. Abridged accounts end on 1 April 2028.

Take the 30-second check to see whether Taxley fits your company, or see what goes in micro-entity accounts.

Key facts (checked on 29 September 2026)

What is the difference between filleted and abridged accounts?

Filleted accounts leave whole statements out of the Companies House copy: the profit and loss account, the directors' report or both. Abridged accounts keep the statements but shorten them, so the balance sheet shows only lettered and Roman-numeral items. Filleting needs no consent; abridging needs all members' consent for that financial year.

The table below compares what each type of small-company accounts sends to Companies House, members and HMRC.

The two options work on different parts of the Companies Act framework. Filleting is a delivery choice under section 444(1) of the Companies Act 2006: the directors of a company subject to the small companies regime must deliver a balance sheet and may also deliver the profit and loss account and the directors' report (legislation.gov.uk: CA 2006 s.444). Abridging is a preparation choice under paragraph 1A of Schedule 1 to the Small Companies and Groups (Accounts and Directors' Report) Regulations 2008 (legislation.gov.uk: SI 2008/409 Sch 1 para 1A), so the shorter formats are the accounts the members receive, not just a shorter public copy. Companies House guidance confirms that a company must prepare and file the same set of accounts for its members and for Companies House when it abridges (GOV.UK: Preparing and filing Companies House accounts). A company can do both at once: prepare abridged accounts with every member's consent, then deliver only the abridged balance sheet.

What are full accounts, and how do they differ from filleted accounts?

Full accounts are the statutory accounts exactly as prepared for the members: a balance sheet, a profit and loss account, notes and, except for a micro-entity, a directors' report. Filleted accounts are the same full accounts with the profit and loss account, the directors' report or both left out of the copy sent to Companies House.

GOV.UK lists what statutory annual accounts contain: a balance sheet showing what the company owns, owes and is owed on the last day of the financial year, a profit and loss account showing sales, running costs and profit or loss, notes, and a directors' report unless the company is a micro-entity (GOV.UK: Prepare annual accounts for a private limited company). Copies go to every shareholder, to Companies House and to HMRC as part of the Company Tax Return (CT600). Delivering full accounts to Companies House means the whole set, profit and loss included, goes on the public register. Filleting changes only the Companies House copy. The figures, the balance sheet and its notes stay identical to the members' accounts, and the accounts are still full accounts in law. HMRC's Company Taxation Manual describes filleting as filing "the full accounts but with the profit and loss account (and the related notes) and/or directors' report removed" (HMRC manual CTM93180).

What are filleted accounts, and what statement goes on the balance sheet?

Filleted accounts are a small company's full accounts delivered to Companies House without the profit and loss account, the directors' report or both. Section 444 of the Companies Act 2006 then requires two things on the delivered balance sheet: a prominent small companies regime statement, and a disclosure that the profit and loss account isn't delivered.

The first statement comes from section 444(5): where the directors don't deliver the profit and loss account or the directors' report, the balance sheet must say, in a prominent position, that the accounts have been delivered under the provisions applicable to companies subject to the small companies regime (legislation.gov.uk: CA 2006 s.444). The second comes from section 444(5A)(a): where the profit and loss account isn't delivered, the balance sheet must disclose that fact. If the company was audited, section 444(5B) adds notes on the auditor's report, such as whether it was qualified and the auditor's name. Section 444(5C) switches off subsection (5A) for a company that qualifies as a micro-entity and prepares micro-entity accounts, though many micro-entity balance sheets carry the disclosure anyway. Companies House guidance puts the rule simply: if you choose not to deliver the profit and loss account, the company must state this on the balance sheet (GOV.UK: Preparing and filing Companies House accounts).

What are abridged accounts, and who has to agree to them?

Abridged accounts are small-company accounts prepared in shortened formats: the balance sheet shows only items with letters and Roman numerals, and the profit and loss account can start at gross profit or loss. Every member of the company must consent, the consent covers one financial year, and a charity can't use them.

Paragraph 1A of Schedule 1 to SI 2008/409 sets the conditions (legislation.gov.uk: SI 2008/409 Sch 1 para 1A). An abridged balance sheet may show only the format items preceded by letters and Roman numerals, provided all of the members have consented. An abridged profit and loss account combines turnover, cost of sales, gross profit and other operating income into a single "Gross profit or loss" line under format 1, again with all members' consent. Consent may only be given for the preceding financial year, so it has to be given again for each year's accounts. The option is closed to a company that was a charity at any time in the year. When a company delivers abridged accounts, section 444(2A) of the Companies Act 2006 requires a statement that all the members have consented to the abridgement (legislation.gov.uk: CA 2006 s.444). Companies House gives the wording to put on the balance sheet, citing section 444(2A) (GOV.UK: Preparing and filing Companies House accounts).

What are micro-entity accounts?

Micro-entity accounts are the simplest statutory accounts, for companies meeting 2 of 3 tests: turnover of £1 million or less, £500,000 or less on the balance sheet, and 10 employees or less. They use shortened formats with no directors' report, and today a micro-entity can send Companies House only its balance sheet.

GOV.UK sets the micro-entity thresholds, which apply to periods beginning on or after 6 April 2025, and says a micro-entity can send only its balance sheet, with less information, to Companies House (GOV.UK: Micro-entity, small and dormant company accounts). The micro-entity formats in Section C of Part 1 of Schedule 1 to SI 2008/409 are already short (legislation.gov.uk: SI 2008/409 Sch 1). The balance sheet has single lines such as "Current assets", "Creditors: amounts falling due within one year" and "Capital and reserves", and the profit and loss account runs from turnover and other income through staff costs, depreciation, other charges and tax to profit or loss. A micro-entity doesn't need the member consent that abridged accounts require, because the short formats are available by law. The members and HMRC still receive the micro-entity profit and loss account. The guide to what goes in micro-entity accounts walks through each line, and FRS 105 vs FRS 102 Section 1A explains when a company can use the micro-entity standard.

Do small companies have to file a profit and loss account with Companies House?

No, not before 1 April 2028. Today a small company or micro-entity can choose not to deliver its profit and loss account and directors' report to Companies House. From 1 April 2028, Companies House guidance says delivering the profit and loss account becomes mandatory for both small companies and micro-entities.

Companies House guidance, updated on 25 September 2026, says small companies currently do not have to deliver a copy of the directors' report or the profit and loss account (GOV.UK: Preparing and filing Companies House accounts). The same page says that from 1 April 2028 it will be mandatory for small companies, and for micro-entities, to deliver a copy of the profit and loss account. The GOV.UK news story of 9 June 2026 adds that small companies and micro-entities will have the option to opt out of publishing the profit and loss account on the public register (GOV.UK: Companies House accounts filing changes from April 2028). Companies House will still hold the figures, and the government campaign page says it will confirm how the opt-out works in due course (Changes to UK company law). Until that process is published, no company can rely on a particular opt-out route.

What can a stranger see on the public register under each option?

A stranger searching the register sees everything a company delivers. Full accounts show turnover and profit. Filleted accounts hide the profit and loss account but show the full balance sheet and notes. Abridged accounts hide turnover and detailed balance sheet lines. Micro-entity accounts delivered as a balance sheet show the fewest figures.

Taxley's illustration: Harbour Lane Studio Ltd, a fictional design company, has turnover of £420,000, gross profit of £180,000, a profit for the year of £48,000, debtors of £35,000, cash of £62,000, trade creditors of £21,000, fixed assets of £14,000 and net assets of £90,000, with 4 employees. Its balance sheet total is £111,000, so it meets all 3 micro-entity tests (GOV.UK: Micro-entity, small and dormant company accounts) and could file any of the four options below. The figures are invented to show the mechanics, and the abridged column assumes all the company's members consented for the year. Its accounts use balance sheet format 1 and profit and loss format 1 from Section B of Schedule 1 to SI 2008/409 (legislation.gov.uk: SI 2008/409 Sch 1). The table below compares what a stranger could read from each Companies House copy.

The illustration shows that filleting hides trading performance but not financial position. The abridged column follows paragraph 1A, which keeps Roman-numeral items such as debtors and cash but drops Arabic-numbered lines such as trade creditors, and folds turnover into gross profit (legislation.gov.uk: SI 2008/409 Sch 1 para 1A). No option hides everything: a reader who compares two years of a filleted balance sheet can see the movement in retained profits, which is profit after tax less dividends. Every option also puts on the register the printed name of the director who signed the balance sheet (GOV.UK: Preparing and filing Companies House accounts).

Can a small company still file abridged accounts in 2026?

Yes. A small company can prepare and file abridged accounts in 2026 and 2027, provided every member consents for the year and the company isn't a charity. Companies House guidance says companies will no longer be able to file abridged accounts from 1 April 2028, when new legislation takes effect.

The change turns on the filing date, not the year end. Companies House guidance says that from 1 April 2028 new legislation means companies will no longer be able to file abridged accounts, and that small companies and micro-entities must deliver a profit and loss account from the same date (GOV.UK: Preparing and filing Companies House accounts). A company with a year end of 30 June 2027 has until 31 March 2028 to file under the current rules, 9 months after its year end, so abridged accounts are still possible if filed on time. A company with a year end of 31 December 2027 faces a 30 September 2028 deadline, so it should plan for full accounts with a profit and loss account unless it files before 1 April 2028. The guide to Companies House software-only accounts filing from 2028 covers the filing-route changes in more detail.

What changes under the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act, and when?

The Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 reforms start for accounts filed from 1 April 2028: filing becomes software-only in iXBRL, abridged accounts end, and small companies and micro-entities must deliver a profit and loss account, with a publication opt-out. Companies House has published no earlier commencement date for these accounts changes.

The dates below are the only commencement dates Companies House and the government have published for these accounts changes, as checked on 29 September 2026.

The directors' report is the change that may not happen. The Act's rewrite of section 444, not yet in force, would require small companies to deliver their directors' report as well (legislation.gov.uk: CA 2006 s.444). The government campaign page says the government plans to remove the need for companies to produce a directors' report, and that it therefore expects the directors' report filing change will no longer apply once the relevant regulations take effect (Changes to UK company law). Companies House's own guidance, updated on 25 September 2026, lists the 1 April 2028 changes without a directors' report requirement for small companies (GOV.UK: Preparing and filing Companies House accounts). Treat any page that gives a 2027 start date, or a compulsory small-company directors' report, as out of date.

What does HMRC get with the Company Tax Return?

HMRC always gets the full accounts as prepared for the members, including the profit and loss account, whatever the company delivers to Companies House. Filleting is a Companies House filing exemption only. The accounts go to HMRC with the Company Tax Return (CT600), in iXBRL format for most companies.

HMRC's Company Taxation Manual says the accounts it requires are the full accounts as prepared for the members, not the filleted accounts, and it calls filleting a filing exemption under section 444 of the Companies Act 2006 (HMRC manual CTM93180). GOV.UK tells small companies and micro-entities the same thing: whatever they send to Companies House, they must still send statutory accounts to their members and to HMRC (GOV.UK: Micro-entity, small and dormant company accounts). HMRC's guidance on the format for accounts in an online return says most companies must send those accounts in iXBRL (GOV.UK: Accounts format for an online Company Tax Return). The manual doesn't mention abridged accounts, but where the members agreed them, the abridged set is the accounts prepared for the members, so that set goes to HMRC. Filleting therefore changes what the public sees but never changes the Corporation Tax a company pays.

How do you choose which accounts to file?

Choose by size first, then privacy. A micro-entity can deliver just its balance sheet. A small company can fillet its full accounts with no consent needed, or abridge them if every member agrees for the year. Full accounts suit companies whose lenders, customers or buyers want published figures.

How to choose which accounts to file:

1. Check the company's size against the GOV.UK thresholds.
2. Prepare full accounts for the members and HMRC first.
3. Weigh privacy against lenders' and customers' need for figures.
4. Get every member's consent before preparing abridged accounts.
5. Add the section 444 statements to the delivered balance sheet.
6. Confirm the filing date falls before 1 April 2028.
7. Send the full accounts to HMRC with the CT600.

Filleting usually suits a small company that wants privacy better than abridging, because it hides more of the trading figures and needs no consent. The size thresholds come from GOV.UK: for periods beginning on or after 6 April 2025, a small company has any 2 of turnover of £15 million or less, £7.5 million or less on its balance sheet and 50 employees or less (GOV.UK: Micro-entity, small and dormant company accounts). Abridging makes sense mainly for a company that wants a shorter balance sheet on the register as well, and its consent has to be renewed each year under paragraph 1A (legislation.gov.uk: SI 2008/409 Sch 1 para 1A). An accountant is worth paying where there are several shareholders and consent is uncertain, where an audit applies, or where a lender's loan terms dictate the form of accounts. The guide to filing company accounts at Companies House online covers deadlines, the authentication code and rejections.

How does Taxley file filleted accounts at Companies House?

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, sends Companies House a filleted copy without the profit and loss account, carrying the section 444 statements, and sends HMRC the full accounts with the CT600.

Both copies come from the same figures. For a small company, one fee of £84.50 (promotion price until 31 Dec 2026; £169.00 from 1 Jan 2027) covers the CT600, the full accounts sent to HMRC in iXBRL and the filleted accounts filed at Companies House, which charges no fee to file annual accounts (GOV.UK: Prepare annual accounts for a private limited company). A dormant company's Companies House copy is the same document HMRC receives, because it has no profit and loss account to leave out. Taxley's small-company form has a tick-box to file abridged FRS 102 Section 1A accounts: ticking it adds the section 444(2A) statement that all members consented and labels the accounts as abridged, but the balance sheet and income statement keep the same lines as full accounts, so the published figures don't shrink (legislation.gov.uk: CA 2006 s.444). Tick it only if every member has agreed. Taxley's accounts don't include a directors' report, so a small company that isn't a micro-entity prepares its directors' report for members separately.

Taxley's Companies House filing has been live since 28 September 2026, within a few limits. You file once the return is paid and the accounts are finished, and you need the company's 6-character authentication code. Taxley doesn't file accounts you uploaded yourself, amended accounts for a period Companies House already has, or the confirmation statement, which you file yourself (GOV.UK: File your confirmation statement with Companies House). It is software, not an accountant, and gives no advice on whether to fillet or abridge. Take the 30-second check to see whether Taxley fits your company.

Frequently asked questions

Can a micro-entity file filleted accounts?

Yes. A micro-entity can deliver only its balance sheet to Companies House and keep its profit and loss account off the register until 1 April 2028. Section 444(5C) exempts it from the (5A) disclosure, but the small companies regime statement under section 444(5) still applies.

Does filing filleted accounts reduce Corporation Tax?

No. Filleting changes only the copy on the public register. HMRC still receives the full accounts, profit and loss account included, with the Company Tax Return, and Corporation Tax is worked out from those figures (HMRC manual CTM93180).

Do members have to agree to abridged accounts every year?

Yes. Paragraph 1A of Schedule 1 to SI 2008/409 says consent may only be given for the preceding financial year, so all members must agree again for each year's abridged accounts. A single objecting member means full accounts, which can still be filleted.

Can someone work out my profit from filleted accounts?

Partly. Filleted accounts hide turnover and the profit and loss account, but the balance sheet shows retained profits. Comparing two years reveals profit after tax less dividends, and the notes still show items such as debtors, creditors and directors' loans.

Will my profit and loss account be public after April 2028?

Not necessarily. From 1 April 2028 small companies and micro-entities must deliver a profit and loss account, but GOV.UK says they can opt out of publication on the public register. Companies House will confirm how the opt-out works in due course.