How to file CIC accounts and a CIC34 at Companies House

In short: Every community interest company (CIC) must send Companies House its annual accounts together with a community interest company report on form CIC34, every year, with a £15 fee and by the normal accounts deadline (GOV.UK: Preparing and filing Companies House accounts, CICs). Online, on Companies House's CIC service, you either upload both in one ZIP package of iXBRL files or type small full accounts and the CIC34 into its form; paper is accepted for accounts delivered before 1 April 2028. Taxley's CIC pack (£49, bought once your Company Tax Return (CT600) with Taxley is paid) prepares the CIC34 and the ready-to-upload ZIP, and you upload it and pay Companies House's £15 yourself.

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

Key facts (checked on 12 October 2026)

Who has to file a CIC34?

Every CIC must file a CIC34 for every financial year, whatever its size and even when it is dormant. The CIC Regulations require a community interest company report for each year, small companies included, and apply the same filing duty and penalties as for a directors' report (CIC Regulations 2005, Part 7).

The CIC34 tells the CIC Regulator and the public what the company did for the community during the year. Companies House says CICs prepare and deliver their accounts in the same way as other companies, and that the CIC34 must be made up to the same date as the accounts and delivered with them (GOV.UK: CICs). A dormant CIC still files one. The Regulator asks it to explain what it did to prepare to trade, or to write "dormant" under each part, and warns that a long period of dormancy can bring its community interest status into question (CIC Regulator: Annual CIC report and accounts).

What does a CIC send to Companies House, and when is it due?

A CIC sends two documents together: its annual accounts and the CIC34 report, both made up to the same date. The fee is £15 for the pair, paid by card online or by cheque on paper. They are due by the same deadline as any private company's accounts, usually 9 months after the end of the accounting reference period (GOV.UK: CICs).

First accounts covering more than 12 months are due 21 months after incorporation, or 3 months after the accounting reference date if that is later (GOV.UK: filing deadlines). Late accounts bring a penalty of £150 to £1,500 for a private company, depending on how late they are; our guide to Companies House late filing penalties explains the bands. Accounts sent without the CIC34 don't meet a CIC's filing duty, because Companies House needs the two delivered together.

Worked example: a CIC filing its second or later accounts, with the normal 9-month deadline.

How can a CIC file its accounts and CIC34 today?

There are three ways today: upload one ZIP package on Companies House's online CIC service, type small full accounts and the CIC34 into Companies House's online form, or post both on paper with a £15 cheque. Companies House's WebFiling service can't be used for CIC accounts (GOV.UK: CICs).

Both online routes start from Companies House's File your annual CIC report and accounts service, where you sign in to a Companies House account, give the company number and authentication code, and pay £15 by debit or credit card. The type-in route asks for the CIC34 answers on screen and then a set of small full accounts. Companies House's criteria limit it to small accounts prepared under FRS 101 or FRS 102, without a revaluation reserve, so micro-entity, abridged and dormant accounts go as a package or on paper. Neither online route takes a PDF. On paper, send the accounts, the CIC34 and a £15 cheque together to Companies House, Crown Way, Cardiff CF14 3UZ (CIC Regulator guidance).

How do you file CIC accounts and a CIC34 online, step by step?

You prepare two iXBRL files, put them in one ZIP laid out the way Companies House specifies, then upload it on Companies House's CIC service and pay £15. Companies House doesn't accept CIC packages through filing software directly, so a person always signs in and uploads the ZIP (GOV.UK: technical interface specifications).

Step 1: Check which CIC34 your company needs

Most CICs use the simplified CIC34. The CIC Regulator's detailed version asks for more from CICs with more complex finances: a CIC limited by shares that declared or proposed a dividend for the year, or declared one for any of the 4 years before, and a CIC that had a debt or debenture with a performance-related interest rate at any time in the year (GOV.UK: form CIC34). If neither applies to your company, use the simplified form. If one does, read the section on the detailed CIC34 below before you start, because it asks for more information.

Step 2: Have the directors approve the accounts

Companies House's CIC service expects accounts the directors have already approved. Use the accounts type your company is entitled to file, such as micro-entity, small or dormant accounts, and make sure the accounts and the CIC34 cover the same period. The company name, company number and period end must be identical in both documents, because Companies House checks that they match.

Step 3: Write the CIC34 and have a director sign it

Fill in the five parts of the simplified report: activities and community benefit, stakeholder consultation, directors' pay, transfers of assets for less than full value, and the signature. Where nothing happened, use the form's own "none" statement rather than leaving the part blank. Write the year-end date in full, such as "31st March 2026". A director signs and dates the report; a handwritten signature is no longer required.

Step 4: Prepare the ZIP package with software

Use software that produces the accounts and the CIC34 as iXBRL files and places them in the folder layout Companies House specifies: a folder named CIC- plus the company number, with an accounts sub-folder and a cic34 sub-folder holding one file each. Before uploading, you can check each iXBRL file on Companies House's test validator.

Step 5: Sign in, upload the ZIP and pay £15

Open File your annual CIC report and accounts, sign in to your Companies House account and enter the company number and authentication code. Choose package accounts, upload the ZIP and pay the £15 fee by debit or credit card. If the authentication code is missing, our guide to a lost Companies House authentication code explains how to get it.

Step 6: Confirm Companies House accepted the filing

Check that Companies House accepted both documents for the right period. The CIC34 becomes part of the company's public record alongside the accounts, so the company's filing history on the Companies House register is the place to look. If the package was rejected, correct the files using the message Companies House gives and upload the package again before the deadline.

How must the CIC ZIP package be laid out?

The ZIP holds one folder named CIC- followed by the company number, with two sub-folders inside: accounts, holding the iXBRL accounts, and cic34, holding the iXBRL CIC34. Each sub-folder holds exactly one .html or .xhtml file, as set out in Companies House's technical specification (GOV.UK: technical interface specifications).

For a fictitious CIC with company number 12345678, the inside of the ZIP looks like this:

CIC-12345678/
    accounts/
        accounts.html
    cic34/
        cic34.html

Companies House checks that the company number in the accounts matches the folder name, that the accounts and the CIC34 carry the same company number, and that both have the same period end. It rejects a file at the wrong folder level, two files in one folder, a wrongly named folder, a file of the wrong type, or a missing folder or file. The specification sets an upload limit of 100 MB and prints the sub-folder names in lower case, so use that spelling even where other guides differ. Both files must be iXBRL tagged with the FRC taxonomies (GOV.UK: technical interface specifications).

Which accounts can go in a CIC package?

Any type of accounts the company is entitled to file. The CIC Regulator says package accounts cover all types of accounts, which includes micro-entity accounts under FRS 105, small accounts under FRS 102 Section 1A and dormant accounts. Companies House adds that dormant CIC accounts filed online must go as a package (CIC Regulator guidance).

The Regulator says the accounting requirements for a CIC are the same as those of ordinary limited companies (CIC Regulator: Annual CIC report and accounts), and the micro-entity exclusions in Companies Act 2006 s.384B don't mention CICs. So a small CIC chooses between micro-entity and small accounts on the same tests as any other company; our guide to FRS 105 vs FRS 102 Section 1A compares them. The limit to small full accounts applies only to Companies House's type-in form, not to the package route.

What does the simplified CIC34 ask?

The simplified CIC34, which the CIC Regulator says suits the majority of CICs, has five parts: what the company did and how it benefited the community, how it consulted its stakeholders, what its directors were paid, any transfers of assets for less than full value, and a director's signature and date (GOV.UK: form CIC34).

1. Activities and impact: what the company did in the year and how that benefited the community. You can attach a social audit report that covers these points.
2. Consultation with stakeholders: who your stakeholders are, how you consulted them and what you did in response. If there was none, the form needs a statement that no consultation was held.
3. Directors' remuneration: what the directors received, or where the accounts show it. If nothing, the form needs a statement that no remuneration was received.
4. Transfers of assets other than for full consideration: full details, including the amount or a fair estimate of value. If none, the form needs a statement that no such transfer was made.
5. Signature: a director signs and dates the report.

At the top, the form asks for the company name in full, the company number and the year-end date written in full, such as "31st March 2026", all matching the accounts. The form warns that reports with the date written the wrong way will be rejected. Any contact details you add appear on the public record. Since 29 January 2025 the Regulator no longer asks for a handwritten signature (GOV.UK: form CIC34). The rules on asset transfers and the asset lock are set out in the CIC Regulator's guidance; read it before reporting a transfer for less than full value.

When does a CIC need the detailed CIC34?

When it has dividends or performance-related interest to report. The CIC Regulator reserves the detailed report for CICs with more complex finances. The detailed form adds parts on dividends and on performance-related interest, and asks for fuller details of directors' pay (GOV.UK: form CIC34).

The dividend part looks back as well as at the current year. The Regulator's detailed form asks a CIC limited by shares to complete it if the company declared or proposed a dividend for the year, or declared a dividend for any of the 4 years before it. The interest part applies if the company had a debt or debenture with a performance-related interest rate, one that moves with its profits, turnover or balance sheet, at any time in the year (GOV.UK: form CIC34). For each dividend, the detailed form asks for the class, number and paid-up value of the shares, the dividend per share, and whether it is exempt. Its directors' pay part covers total pay, long-term incentive schemes, pension contributions, compensation for loss of office and sums paid to third parties for directors' services. A CIC limited by guarantee with no performance-related interest stays on the simplified form.

How do you amend CIC accounts that Companies House already has?

On paper only. Companies House says you can't file amended CIC accounts online or using software. Send the amended accounts with a CIC34, mark them as amended and state that they replace the original accounts. There is no £15 fee for amended CIC accounts (CIC Regulator guidance).

The amended accounts must also say that they are now the company's statutory accounts and that they are prepared as at the date of the original accounts (CIC Regulator guidance). Companies House says that from 1 April 2028 all accounts filings, revised accounts included, must be made through software (GOV.UK: Using software to file your company's information). When we checked on 12 October 2026, its CIC guidance did not yet say how amended CIC accounts will be filed after that date, so check the current guidance before you amend.

What changes for CICs from 1 April 2028?

From 1 April 2028, paper closes for accounts, and Companies House says CICs will need to deliver their accounts and CIC report as a package through its online File package accounts service. The package service itself continues after that date, so the ZIP route is the one to learn now (GOV.UK: Using software to file your company's information).

The same reforms change what small companies file. Abridged accounts end, and micro-entities and small companies must file a profit and loss account, with an option to opt out of having it published (Changes to UK company law: accounts). The start date moved from April 2027 to 1 April 2028. Our guide to Companies House software-only filing from 2028 covers the wider changes for every company.

What mistakes get a CIC package rejected?

The checks Companies House publishes point to the usual mistakes: details that don't match between the two files, a package laid out the wrong way, and missing required statements. Companies House checks the company number and period end across the accounts, the CIC34 and the folder name, and expects exactly one iXBRL file in each folder (GOV.UK: technical interface specifications).

• A company number or period end that doesn't match between the accounts, the CIC34 and the folder name.
• The wrong folder layout: files at the top level, two files in one folder, a renamed folder, or a PDF instead of iXBRL.
• A company name or year-end date that differs from the accounts, or a date not written in full.
• No directors' pay statement. Micro-entity and small accounts often leave directors' pay out, but the CIC34 must still give it, or say where the accounts show it, or state that none was received (CIC Regulations 2005, Part 7).
• A blank part where the form needs its "none" statement.
• No director's name or signing date on the report.

Can Taxley file a CIC's accounts and CIC34 for you?

No, Taxley can't send them to Companies House for you, but it prepares the package you upload there. Companies House doesn't take a CIC's accounts and CIC34 from filing software. Once your Company Tax Return (CT600) with Taxley is paid, the CIC pack (£49) makes your CIC34 and a ready-to-upload ZIP with your accounts. You upload it on Companies House's CIC service and pay its £15 fee there.

A person files a CIC's accounts and CIC34: by uploading a package on Companies House's CIC service, by typing small full accounts into that service, or on paper before 1 April 2028. The pack is for the first way. It writes the simplified CIC34 and builds the ZIP around the Companies House copy of the accounts in your return.

Taxley (taxley.co.uk), UK online software that prepares and files the Company Tax Return (CT600) with HMRC and, for most companies, the annual accounts with Companies House, offers the CIC pack as an add-on for £49 once your return is paid. It is for a return with micro-entity (FRS 105) or small (FRS 102 Section 1A) accounts, dormant ones included, and one pack covers one set of accounts.

How do you use Taxley's CIC pack, step by step?

1. On your return's page in Taxley, go to "Companies House — accounts filing". In the "CIC pack" panel, press "Get the CIC pack — £49". You can open it before the return is paid.
2. Under "1. Your answers", answer the questions: dividends or performance-related interest, stakeholder consultation, directors' pay and asset transfers. Check what Taxley fills in for you: the activities from your accounts, and the signing director and date. Press "Save answers".
3. Check the report under "2. Your CIC34". To change it, change an answer and save again.
4. Under "3. Pay £49", press "Pay £49" and pay by card. This works once your return is paid and its accounts are final.
5. Under "Your CIC pack is ready", press "Download package (ZIP)" and "Download CIC34 (PDF)". Your answers are fixed after the first download, so check them first. Your receipt is in "Orders & receipts".
6. Have the company number and authentication code ready. Open Companies House's File your annual CIC report and accounts service and sign in.
7. Upload the ZIP as it is, without unzipping or changing it, and pay Companies House's £15 fee there.

Each screen is shown in our CIC pack walkthrough with screenshots.

The pack prepares the simplified CIC34 only. If your CIC is limited by shares and declared or proposed a dividend for this year, or declared one for any of the 4 years before, or if it had performance-related interest on a debt or debenture during the year, the pack tells you before you pay that it can't prepare your report, because the Regulator's detailed CIC34 asks for those details, and you aren't charged. If Companies House rejects the package because of something in Taxley's files, you get the full £49 back; this doesn't cover a rejection caused by your own answers, or Companies House's £15 fee. Your CIC34 answers are your own statement as a director, and Taxley is software, not legal or tax advice. The printable CIC34 is also useful if you ever send amended accounts by post. Take the 30-second check to see whether Taxley fits your company, or see the prices.

Frequently asked questions

Does a dormant CIC have to file a CIC34?

Yes. Every CIC files a CIC34 with its accounts each year, including when it is dormant. The CIC Regulator asks a dormant CIC to explain what it did to prepare to trade, or to write "dormant" under each part. Online, dormant CIC accounts must go as a package.

How much does it cost to file CIC accounts?

Companies House charges £15 for the accounts and CIC34 together, whether you file online by card or on paper by cheque. There is no fee for amended CIC accounts, which go by post. Taxley's CIC pack, if you use it, costs £49 on top.

Can I file CIC accounts through Companies House WebFiling?

No. Companies House says its WebFiling service can't be used for CIC accounts. Online, you use the "File your annual CIC report and accounts" service instead, either uploading a ZIP package or typing in small full accounts and the CIC34 answers.

Can I upload a PDF of my CIC accounts and CIC34?

No. Companies House's online CIC routes accept iXBRL files inside a ZIP package, or answers typed into its own form, but not PDFs. If you only have PDFs, print them and file by post, which remains possible for accounts delivered before 1 April 2028.

Who can upload a CIC package to Companies House?

A person signed in to a Companies House account, with the company number and authentication code, who pays the £15 by card. That can be someone at the company or an agent filing for it. Software can prepare the package but can't submit it to Companies House.

Does the CIC34 need a handwritten signature?

No. Since 29 January 2025 the CIC Regulator no longer requires a handwritten signature on the CIC34. A director must still sign and date the report, and the iXBRL version carries the signing director's name and the date.

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

Sources (checked on 12 October 2026):

• Companies House: Preparing and filing Companies House accounts, section 18 (CICs)
• Companies House: File your annual CIC report and accounts
• Companies House: File package accounts with Companies House
• Companies House: technical interface specifications for software (v6.0, September 2026)
• CIC Regulator: CIC business activities, forms and step-by-step guidelines
• CIC Regulator: Form CIC34, community interest company report
• CIC Regulator: Community interest companies guidance, annual CIC report and accounts
• Companies House: Using software to file your company's information
• Changes to UK company law: changes to accounts
• The Community Interest Company Regulations 2005, Part 7