Pay-per-return or subscription CT600 software: which suits you?

In short: For one company filing one Company Tax Return (CT600) a year, pay-per-return software usually fits: you pay when you file, and nothing runs between returns. A subscription can suit accountants, several companies or bookkeeping you'd buy anyway. Either way, the return is due 12 months after the accounting period ends (GOV.UK: Company Tax Returns). Taxley has no subscription: it files the CT600 for one fee per return, £49.95 with micro-entity accounts, then files the accounts at Companies House once the return is paid and finished.

Take the 30-second check to see whether Taxley fits your company, or see Taxley's fee for each kind of return.

Key facts (checked on 4 October 2026)

Should a small company pick pay-per-return or subscription CT600 software?

A company that files one Company Tax Return a year usually gets more from pay-per-return software, because it pays only when it files and nothing runs between returns. A subscription makes more sense when the cost is spread over many returns, or when it buys bookkeeping you'd use anyway. Compare a full year's total before choosing.

The choice matters more now that HMRC's own route has gone. HMRC's "File your accounts and Company Tax Return" service closed on 31 March 2026, and from 1 April 2026 HMRC says to use commercial software to file annual accounts and Company Tax Returns (GOV.UK: closure of the HMRC service). The same page asks you to make sure the software can file a CT600, a Corporation Tax computation and the company accounts, and accepts paper only with a reasonable excuse or when filing in Welsh. The accounts and computations in an online return must be in iXBRL, a reporting standard for business financial data (HMRC manual COM60040), so a product that can't produce iXBRL leaves a gap you'd have to fill elsewhere. Directors who used HMRC's free service now pay for software or an agent, and the pricing model decides how that cost falls across the year: one charge when the return goes in, or a regular charge whether or not anything is filed. Our guide to what replaced HMRC's filing service covers the switch itself.

What is the difference between pay-per-return and subscription CT600 software?

Pay-per-return software charges a fee for each Company Tax Return you file, typically taken when you file it. Subscription software charges a monthly or yearly amount for access, whether you file one return, several or none. A third model, prepaid packs of returns bought upfront, sits between the two and is aimed at people filing many returns.

Each model ties the price to something different. A pay-per-return price is tied to the filing itself, so the cost follows the number of returns the company has to send. A company that gets a notice to deliver a Company Tax Return must send one even if it made a loss or has no Corporation Tax to pay (GOV.UK: Company Tax Returns), so most active companies file once a year and pay once a year. A subscription price is tied to time instead: the charge arrives each month or each year, and a plan may renew automatically at the end of its term unless you cancel. Some subscriptions are bookkeeping products, with invoicing, bank feeds or expense tracking, where the CT600 is one module among several. Prepaid packs buy a set number of returns in advance, sometimes with an expiry date, which suits an accountant with a known client list better than a director with one company. Our guide to choosing CT600 filing software in the UK describes each type of product.

Which pricing model fits which kind of company?

Match the model to how many returns you file and what else you need from the software. A director with one company filing once a year, including a dormant company, is usually suited by pay-per-return. Accountants, owners of several companies and people already paying for bookkeeping software may find a subscription or prepaid credits spread the cost better.

Two rows need more care than the table allows. A dormant company may not need a return every year: once you've told HMRC the company is dormant, it doesn't need to file another Company Tax Return unless it gets a further notice to deliver one (GOV.UK: Dormant for Corporation Tax). In a year with no return to file, a pay-per-return product costs nothing, while a subscription keeps charging unless you cancel it. The long first period row matters because an accounting period for Corporation Tax can't be longer than 12 months, so accounts covering more than 12 months need 2 returns (GOV.UK: Accounting periods for Corporation Tax). A pay-per-return product may count those as one filing or charge for each return, so ask before you start. Owners of several companies should add up every company's fees for the year before assuming either model wins, because the answer depends on the actual prices.

How do you work out the year's cost of each model?

Add up a full year on the same basis for both. A subscription of £S a month costs 12 × £S a year, whatever you file. Pay-per-return costs £R for each of the N returns you file, so N × £R. Then add anything charged on top: Companies House filing, supplementary pages, amendments and VAT.

Worked comparison (letters only, no real prices: R is the fee per return, S the monthly subscription, N the returns filed in the year)

The two models cost the same when N × £R equals 12 × £S, which is a break-even of N = 12 × £S ÷ £R returns a year. File fewer returns than that and pay-per-return costs less over the year; file more and the subscription does. For one company, N is usually 1, so pay-per-return costs less whenever the fee for one return is under 12 months of subscription payments. For a yearly plan of £Y, compare N × £R with £Y instead. A first period longer than 12 months makes N = 2 for that year, unless the product charges once for both returns (GOV.UK: Accounting periods for Corporation Tax). In a year with no return, N = 0, so pay-per-return costs nothing and the subscription still costs 12 × £S. Put both prices on the same VAT basis before comparing: the standard rate is 20% (GOV.UK: VAT rates), so a price quoted before VAT rises by a fifth if VAT is added. For the other bills a company pays each year, see limited company running costs.

What does the price need to include for a small company?

The price should cover everything the filing needs: the CT600 filed live to HMRC, the tax computation and accounts in iXBRL, the accounts filed at Companies House, any supplementary pages such as the CT600A, and amendments. For a subscription, also check renewal and cancellation terms. For either model, check whether VAT is added.

Supplementary pages are easy to overlook. A close company completes the CT600A if, for example, it lent money to a participator, such as a director who owns shares, and the loan wasn't repaid within the period, so tax is due under section 455 (GOV.UK: Completing the CT600A page). A price that excludes that page can leave a director's loan year needing a second product or an adviser. Companies House filing is separate from the return to HMRC. Its published fees list no charge for a company's annual accounts (GOV.UK: Companies House fees), so any charge for filing them comes from the software. Filing through software also needs the company authentication code, a 6-character code Companies House issues to each company (GOV.UK: Company authentication codes). Amendments matter because you usually have 12 months after the filing deadline to make them, and commercial software is one route (GOV.UK: Making changes). Our guide on whether cheap CT600 software is safe has a longer pre-purchase checklist.

Does the pricing model change your deadlines or penalties?

No. The deadlines are the same whichever way you pay: the return is due 12 months after the accounting period ends, and Corporation Tax usually 9 months and 1 day after it ends (GOV.UK). GOV.UK lists a £200 penalty for a return one day late, whatever software you use.

The pricing model changes what you need in place on the day you file, not when you file. Under pay-per-return, the fee is usually taken at the point of filing, so have a way to pay ready and leave time before the deadline in case something needs fixing. Under a subscription, make sure the plan is still active, and that it includes the CT600, when the return is ready. For a return due on or after 1 April 2026, the late filing penalties are £200 one day late and another £200 at 3 months, rising to £1,000 each if the return is late 3 times in a row (GOV.UK; GOV.UK). Whichever model you pick, a company must keep its records for 6 years from the end of the last financial year they relate to, and longer in some cases (GOV.UK). Download the filed CT600, computation and accounts as you go, because a subscription you later cancel may no longer give you access to them. Taxley's free Corporation Tax deadline calculator works out the filing and payment dates from your period end.

Is Taxley pay-per-return or subscription CT600 software?

Pay-per-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, charges one fee per return and has no subscription. The fee is shown before you pay and taken only when you choose to file, as a one-off payment.

Preparing and previewing the return, computation and accounts costs nothing; the fee is charged before the return is sent to HMRC. The fee is set by whether the company is dormant and which accounts it files, so supplementary pages such as the CT600A don't change it. A first period longer than 12 months, filed as two returns, is one filing with one fee. The fee also covers filing the accounts at Companies House, once the return is paid and the accounts are finished, using the company's 6-character authentication code. Amending a return filed with Taxley, once HMRC has accepted it, is included at no extra charge, and so is correcting and resending a return HMRC rejected. No VAT is charged on Taxley's fees, and nothing renews: there's no plan to cancel. A dormant company's nil return is £14.95, and a return with small-company accounts is £129.

Taxley has limits worth knowing before you choose it. It doesn't file the confirmation statement, which has its own £50 online fee at Companies House (GOV.UK: Companies House fees), and at Companies House it 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. For accounts it filed there, it can file amended accounts that replace them, with the figures as filed. It's software, not an accountant: it doesn't give tax advice or pay the company's Corporation Tax, so review your figures before filing, ideally with a qualified adviser. Accountants filing for clients can use its agent mode and buy prepaid credit packs, valid for 12 months from purchase, rather than a subscription. You can download PDF copies of the CT600, accounts and computation for your records. Take the 30-second check to see whether Taxley fits your company, or compare what each return costs.

Frequently asked questions

Is there CT600 software with no subscription?

Yes. Pay-per-return products charge a fee for each return filed, with no monthly or yearly charge. Taxley is one: it charges one fee per return, taken when you choose to file. Check what any such fee covers, including iXBRL accounts, Companies House filing and supplementary pages.

Is a subscription worth it for a dormant company?

Rarely, on cost alone. Once you've told HMRC the company is dormant, it doesn't file another Company Tax Return unless it gets a further notice to deliver one (GOV.UK). A subscription keeps charging in the years with nothing to file.

Do I pay twice if my first accounts cover more than 12 months?

It depends on the software. Accounts covering more than 12 months need 2 Company Tax Returns, because an accounting period can't exceed 12 months (GOV.UK). Some products charge per return; Taxley charges one fee for both.

Is VAT added to CT600 software prices?

Sometimes. A VAT-registered seller adds VAT at the standard rate of 20% (GOV.UK: VAT rates), so check whether a quoted price is before or after VAT. Taxley charges no VAT on its fees.

Does the way I pay for software change what HMRC accepts?

No. HMRC needs the CT600 with the accounts and computations in iXBRL, filed online, whichever pricing model your software uses (HMRC manual COM60040). The deadlines and penalties are the same too.

General information, not personalised tax or accounting advice.