Last updated: 21 October 2026 | By Chris Barnard, Managing Director, Acenteus Accounting
This article is general guidance for UK accountancy practices based on Companies House and GOV.UK announcements up to 21 October 2026. Some details, including how the profit and loss opt-out will work, are still to be confirmed, so check Companies House guidance before you advise clients.
The Companies House accounts filing changes start on 1 April 2028. From that date every company must file its annual accounts in iXBRL through commercial software, web and paper filing close for accounts, abridged accounts are removed, and small companies and micro-entities must file a profit and loss account, with an option not to publish it. Companies House confirmed the date on 9 June 2026, after pausing the original April 2027 start in July 2025.
If you have read that the reforms were paused, that was true in 2025 and early 2026. It is no longer true. The package was confirmed in June 2026 and the date is now fixed. For a practice, the question is no longer whether this happens but how many of your clients it touches and how much extra work it adds to your 2028 and 2029 year ends. This guide answers both, with a timeline, a client impact model and a plan you can start this year.
Key takeaways
- The date: all accounts filed on or after 1 April 2028 must go through commercial software in iXBRL.
- The end of WebFiling for accounts: web and paper routes close for accounts. They stay open for other filings such as confirmation statements.
- More disclosure: small companies and micro-entities must file a profit and loss account. They can opt out of having it published, and Companies House will confirm how.
- Abridged accounts go: the option to file abridged accounts is removed.
- The practice impact: every client you file through WebFiling, on paper or as abridged accounts will need a new route and, for most, a fuller set of filed accounts.
What are the Companies House accounts filing changes?
The changes come from the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 and are set out on the government’s changes to UK company law site. The main ones are:
| Change | What it means | Who it affects |
|---|---|---|
| Software-only filing in iXBRL | All accounts filed on or after 1 April 2028 must be filed through commercial software in inline XBRL | Every UK company, whether it files itself or through an agent |
| Web and paper filing close for accounts | The free Companies House web service and paper forms can no longer be used for accounts | Companies and agents that use WebFiling or paper today |
| Profit and loss filing for small and micro companies | Small companies and micro-entities must file a profit and loss account | Most of a typical practice's company clients |
| Opt-out of publication | Small and micro companies can choose not to have the profit and loss published on the public register | Clients who are concerned about competitors seeing their numbers |
| Abridged accounts removed | Small companies can no longer prepare and file abridged accounts | Clients currently filing abridged accounts |
| Strengthened audit exemption statement | Directors must state which exemption they claim and confirm the company qualifies | Every company claiming audit exemption |
| Limits on shortening the accounting reference period | Shortening more than once in five years needs a business reason | Groups and companies that realign year ends |
Even where the profit and loss is not published, Companies House, HMRC and law enforcement will still be able to see it. The government has also said it intends to remove the directors’ report requirement for all companies in future, but no date has been set, so plan on the current rules.
What is the timeline, and were the changes paused?
Yes, they were paused, and then confirmed. Here is the sequence, because older articles and some AI answers still say the reforms are on hold.
| Date | What happened |
|---|---|
| October 2023 | The Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 becomes law |
| July 2025 | Companies House delays the original 1 April 2027 start to allow further engagement, promising at least 21 months' notice |
| 31 March 2026 | The joint HMRC and Companies House online accounts and Company Tax Return service closes |
| 9 June 2026 | Companies House and the government confirm the reforms will start in April 2028 |
| 1 April 2028 | Software-only iXBRL filing begins and web and paper routes close for accounts |
The GOV.UK announcement of 9 June 2026 is the authoritative source for the April 2028 date, and ICAS summarised the confirmation in its news report of 12 June 2026. The earlier closure of the joint filing service is set out in the GOV.UK notice that the online accounts and Company Tax Return service is closing.
The accounts reforms are separate from identity verification, which is already live. Directors and people with significant control have been verifying their identity since November 2025, and agents who verify on their behalf need to be registered as Authorised Corporate Service Providers. We cover that in our guide to Companies House identity verification for accountants.
How will the April 2028 changes affect your practice?
The changes add work in two places: the filing route and the content of the filed accounts. The size of the impact depends on how your clients file today, so the first job is to count them.
Split your company clients into four groups:
- Already filing through software in iXBRL. No change of route. Check only the profit and loss and opt-out decision for small and micro clients.
- Filing through Companies House WebFiling. Must move to software. Usually micro-entities and dormant companies.
- Filing on paper. Must move to software. Often a handful of older or unusual clients.
- Filing abridged accounts. Must switch to a full small company format and file a profit and loss account.
Then estimate the extra time per set for each group. The figures in the table below are illustrative assumptions for a typical small practice, not published data. Replace them with your own time records.
| Client group | Example number of clients | Assumed extra time per set in the first year | Extra hours |
|---|---|---|---|
| Already software filers (micro and small) | 80 | 0.25 hours for the profit and loss and opt-out decision | 20 |
| WebFiling micro-entities | 60 | 1 hour to move to software and prepare a fuller filing | 60 |
| Paper filers | 10 | 1.5 hours | 15 |
| Abridged accounts filers | 50 | 1.5 hours to move to full small company accounts | 75 |
| Total for 200 company clients | 200 | About 170 hours |
On those assumptions, a practice with 200 company clients needs about 170 extra hours in its first season under the new rules, which is roughly a month of one person’s time. Much of it will land in months that are already busy. The point of the model is not the exact number. It is that the extra work is predictable now, so you can plan for it rather than discover it in 2029.
Which clients should you talk to first?
Prioritise the clients for whom the change is a real decision, not just a filing mechanic.
- Clients filing abridged accounts. They are filing abridged accounts for a reason, often privacy. Explain the profit and loss opt-out, and what Companies House, HMRC and law enforcement will still see.
- Micro-entities filing through WebFiling. These are usually the lowest fee clients. Decide now whether your fee covers software filing and the fuller output, and update the engagement letter if it does not.
- Clients who file their own accounts. Some of your bookkeeping or tax clients may file accounts themselves through WebFiling. From April 2028 they will need software, which is an opportunity to offer accounts preparation.
- Clients claiming audit exemption near the thresholds. The strengthened statement asks directors to confirm the company qualifies. The thresholds rose for periods beginning on or after 6 April 2025, which our guide to audit exemption thresholds and ISQM 1 covers.
What should practices do now, and before April 2028?
Use the 18 months before the change to spread the work, not compress it.
| When | Action |
|---|---|
| Now to March 2027 | Count clients by filing route. Check your accounts production software can file iXBRL for every entity type you prepare. Update engagement letters and fees for clients whose filing will change |
| April 2027 to March 2028 | Move WebFiling, paper and abridged clients to software filing ahead of the deadline. Accounts filed through software before April 2028 are accepted now, so the first compulsory season need not be the first attempt |
| Once Companies House publishes the process | Agree the profit and loss opt-out approach with each small and micro client and record the decision |
| From 1 April 2028 | All accounts through software. Monitor review time per set and adjust capacity |
GOV.UK’s guidance on using software to file your company’s information links to the list of software that can file accounts. If you are reviewing your production stack at the same time, check iXBRL tagging, the framework templates you need and whether remote or outsourced staff can work in it. Our complete guide to accounts outsourcing covers how outsourced preparers fit into that workflow.
Remember that FRS 102 is also changing. The periodic review amendments on leases and revenue apply to periods beginning on or after 1 January 2026, so 2028 filings will reflect both the new filing rules and the new standard. Our guide to FRS 102 changes to lease accounting and revenue explains them.
How should practices handle the extra capacity in 2028 and 2029?
There are three realistic options, and many practices will combine them.
- Start early. Moving clients to software filing during 2027 spreads the transition work across a quieter year.
- Raise fees where the scope changes. A micro client that moves from a WebFiling balance sheet to software-filed accounts with a profit and loss account is receiving more work. Price it.
- Add capacity for the peak. Outsourcing accounts preparation for the busiest months, or adding a dedicated outsourced accountant for the transition year, absorbs the extra hours without a permanent hire. Our guide to building practice capacity without permanent hires sets out the options, and our article on solving year-end bottlenecks with outsourcing shows where the queue usually forms.
Company secretarial work is also growing under the same Act, from identity verification to register changes. If you are deciding whether to offer it, our guide to company secretarial services for UK practices covers the costs.
How Acenteus Accounting helps
We prepare year-end accounts for UK practices under FRS 105, FRS 102 Section 1A and full FRS 102, in your accounts production software and to your templates, with tax computations and a review note for your reviewer. Your team reviews, signs and files. For the 2028 transition, that means we can take on the extra preparation work while your team handles client conversations about the profit and loss opt-out and new fees.
Acenteus is a UK company based in Brighton with experienced accountants in dedicated delivery centres in India under UK oversight. We have more than 100 accounting professionals and finalise more than 5,000 sets of accounts a year, for practices including Top 50 UK firms. You can work with us through a Full-Time Model, a dedicated accountant or team working only on your clients, or an Hourly Model for peaks.
“The audit professionals at Acenteus demonstrate exceptional proficiency, strictly adhering to the Mercia methodology,” says the Managing Partner at Carter & Co.
See how it works on our accounting outsourcing for UK accounting firms page, or send us your client count by filing route and we will help you plan capacity for the first 2028 season.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
On 1 April 2028. Companies House confirmed on 9 June 2026 that all accounts filed on or after that date must be filed in iXBRL through commercial software, and that web and paper filing will close for accounts.
They were paused in July 2025, when the original April 2027 start was dropped. They were confirmed on 9 June 2026 and will now start on 1 April 2028.
Yes. The option for small companies to file abridged accounts is removed as part of the April 2028 changes.
Yes, from April 2028. Small companies and micro-entities must file a profit and loss account, but they can opt out of having it published on the public register. Companies House, HMRC and law enforcement will still be able to see it.
Yes for other filings, such as confirmation statements and changes to directors. No for annual accounts filed on or after 1 April 2028, which must go through commercial software.
Yes. Software filing is already available, and moving clients across before the deadline spreads the work and avoids a first attempt in the busiest season.
All companies must file accounts through software from April 2028, so dormant companies that currently use WebFiling will need a software route too. Check Companies House guidance for any specific dormant company arrangements as they are published.
Under the reforms small companies file a directors' report, but the government has said it intends to remove the directors' report requirement for all companies. No date has been set, so plan on the current rules until it is confirmed.
