What Happens After Incorporating a Company? First Year Limited Company Checklist
Incorporating your company is only the first step — what you do in the weeks and months afterwards determines whether your first year runs smoothly or ends in avoidable penalties. This guide from Filing Accounts UK sets out exactly what happens after incorporating a company and gives you a complete first year limited company checklist, using only verified facts from official Companies House and HMRC guidance.
At Filing Accounts, we help newly incorporated UK companies get their first-year compliance right from day one. You can check your company’s live filing status on the Companies House public register at any time.
What Happens Immediately After Incorporation
Once Companies House approves your application — usually within 24 hours for standard digital incorporation — you’ll receive a Certificate of Incorporation. This confirms your company legally exists and includes your company number, incorporation date, and registered name. From this point, your company has ongoing legal obligations to two separate bodies: Companies House, the UK’s registrar of companies, and HMRC, the UK’s tax authority. These obligations run on different clocks with different deadlines, and missing one does not excuse the other.
First Year Limited Company Checklist
1. Store Your Incorporation Documents Safely
Keep your Certificate of Incorporation, Memorandum of Association, and Articles of Association at your registered office (or your Single Alternative Inspection Location) and make them available for inspection. These are legally required records, not just formalities.
2. Open a Business Bank Account
A separate business bank account isn’t a strict legal requirement, but it is strongly recommended. Using a personal account for company transactions creates accounting errors and makes your annual accounts far harder to prepare accurately.
3. Start Keeping Accounting Records From Day One
You are legally required to keep accounting records from the moment your company is incorporated — this obligation does not wait until you start trading. Records must be kept for at least six years. Failing to maintain them can result in a fine of up to £3,000 and possible director disqualification.
4. Get Your Companies House Authentication Code Early
You’ll need this 6-character code to file online with Companies House. It’s posted to your registered office and can take up to 10 working days to arrive, so request or locate it well before any deadline. See our full guide on what to do if you lose your authentication code.
5. Register for Corporation Tax Within 3 Months of Trading
You must register for Corporation Tax with HMRC within 3 months of starting to trade — not from your incorporation date. “Starting to trade” includes selling, advertising, employing staff, or buying stock, not simply receiving payments. If your company hasn’t started trading yet, it’s treated as dormant for Corporation Tax purposes, but you should still notify HMRC of its dormant status.
6. Locate Your Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR)
HMRC posts your company’s UTR shortly after incorporation, usually within a few weeks. You’ll need it for all Corporation Tax communications and to complete your Corporation Tax registration. If it hasn’t arrived after a few weeks, contact HMRC directly.
7. Register for VAT If Required
VAT registration is mandatory once your taxable turnover exceeds £90,000 in any rolling 12-month period. You can also register voluntarily below this threshold, which allows you to reclaim VAT on business purchases — worth considering if your customers are VAT-registered businesses.
8. Register for PAYE Before Your First Payroll Run
If you plan to pay yourself or any employee a salary, you must register as an employer with HMRC before your first payroll run — this applies even if you are the company’s only employee.
9. Issue Share Certificates and Maintain Your Register of Members
Issue share certificates to your shareholders and maintain a statutory register of members. This register must still be kept by the company itself. Note that since 18 November 2025, companies are no longer required to maintain their own separate registers of directors, company secretaries, and PSCs — this information is now held centrally by Companies House.
10. Know Your Confirmation Statement Deadline
Your first Confirmation Statement is due within 14 days of your first “confirmation date,” which is usually 12 months after incorporation. The digital filing fee is £50. This is a completely separate filing from your Annual Accounts — see our guide on Confirmation Statement vs Annual Accounts for the full breakdown.
11. Know Your First Annual Accounts Deadline
Your first Annual Accounts are due 21 months after incorporation — longer than the usual 9-month window, because your first accounting period is extended to align with your Accounting Reference Date (ARD). All subsequent accounts are due 9 months after your ARD.
12. Keep Companies House Informed of Any Changes
Any change to your directors, PSCs, or registered office address must be reported to Companies House within 14 days. This applies throughout the life of your company, not just the first year.
First Year Deadlines at a Glance
| Task | Deadline |
|---|---|
| Register for Corporation Tax | Within 3 months of starting to trade |
| Register for PAYE | Before your first payroll run |
| Register for VAT | Once taxable turnover exceeds £90,000 (rolling 12 months) |
| Report changes to directors/PSCs/address | Within 14 days of the change |
| First Confirmation Statement | Within 14 days of your first confirmation date (~12 months after incorporation) |
| First Annual Accounts | 21 months after incorporation |
What If My Company Hasn’t Started Trading Yet?
A company that has been incorporated but has not yet started trading is treated as dormant. You still must file a Confirmation Statement and simplified Dormant Company Accounts with Companies House every year, and you should notify HMRC of the company’s dormant status. Dormant accounts are significantly simpler than full accounts and don’t require a profit and loss account, but they are still a legal requirement — there is no exemption for inactivity.
Common Mistakes New Directors Make
Registering for Corporation Tax From the Wrong Date
The 3-month registration window starts from when you begin trading, not from your incorporation date. Registering late can trigger penalties even if the company has made little or no profit.
Assuming No Trading Means No Filings
A dormant company still has to file a Confirmation Statement and dormant accounts every year. Companies House does not waive these requirements just because you haven’t started trading.
Leaving Your Authentication Code Until the Last Minute
Since it’s only ever posted (never emailed), requesting it early avoids being caught out close to a filing deadline.
Not Keeping Accounting Records From the Start
This obligation begins at incorporation, not when trading starts. Waiting to organise records until your first accounts are due creates unnecessary pressure and risk of error.
Missing the 14-Day Window for Company Changes
New directors often don’t realise that changes to directors, PSCs, or the registered address must be reported to Companies House within 14 days, not at the next Confirmation Statement.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the first thing I should do after incorporating a company?
Store your Certificate of Incorporation and formation documents securely, then open a business bank account and begin keeping accounting records — these obligations start immediately, regardless of when you begin trading.
When do I need to register for Corporation Tax?
Within 3 months of starting to trade, not from your incorporation date.
When is my first Confirmation Statement due?
Within 14 days of your first confirmation date, which is usually the anniversary of incorporation. The digital filing fee is £50.
When are my first Annual Accounts due?
21 months after incorporation — longer than the usual 9-month deadline that applies in later years.
Do I need a business bank account by law?
It isn’t a strict legal requirement, but it’s strongly recommended to avoid accounting errors and simplify your annual filings.
Does a dormant company still need to file anything?
Yes. A dormant company must still file a Confirmation Statement and Dormant Company Accounts every year, and should notify HMRC of its dormant status.
Do I still need a register of directors and PSCs?
No — since 18 November 2025, this information is held centrally by Companies House. You must, however, still maintain your own register of members (shareholders).
Need Help With Your First Year of Compliance? Talk to Filing Accounts UK
The first year after incorporation involves more moving parts than most new directors expect — tax registrations, statutory records, and two separate Companies House deadlines, all running on different clocks. At Filing Accounts, we support newly incorporated UK companies with Corporation Tax registration, Confirmation Statements, and Annual Accounts, so nothing gets missed in your first year.
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