The UK government has paused planned changes to Companies House filing rules that would have required smaller businesses (under £10.2m turnover, £5.1m balance sheets, fewer than 50 employees) to disclose more detailed annual accounts from April 2027. Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds reversed the move, citing concerns about increased red tape and burdens on small firms, aligning with the government's industrial strategy to reduce regulatory costs.
Smaller firms to escape ‘burdensome’ Companies House filing rules
BusinessUK
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TL;DR: Key points with love ❤️The UK government has paused planned changes to Companies House filing rules that would have required smaller businesses (under £10.2m turnover, £5.1m balance sheets, fewer than 50 employees) to disclose more detailed annual accounts from April 2027. Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds reversed the move, citing concerns about increased red tape and burdens on small firms, aligning with the government's industrial strategy to reduce regulatory costs.
- 1 April 2024: Companies House collected only £1,250 in fines after new powers
- 2 June 2025: Government unveiled its industrial strategy aiming to cut administrative costs by 25%
- 3 July 3, 2025: Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds paused changes to Companies House filing rules
- 4 April 2027: Original date for new rules to compel more detailed accounts
- Smaller firms will continue to be exempt from filing more detailed accounts
- Reduced regulatory burden for small businesses
- Potential impact on data quality on the Companies House register
- Continued criticism of Companies House's policing of information
What: The UK government has paused changes to Companies House filing rules that would have required smaller firms to file more detailed annual accounts.
When: July 3, 2025 (pause announced); changes were due from April 2027.
Where: United Kingdom.
Why: Concerns that the new rules would be too burdensome for small firms, increasing red tape and administrative costs, contrary to the government's industrial strategy to reduce regulatory burdens.
How: Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds reversed the move. The previous legislation (Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act) intended to compel more detailed disclosure to improve data quality and counter fraud, but business groups criticized the cost of compliance for small companies.