Register or restart Corporation Tax for a limited company
Tell HMRC when your company starts or restarts business activity.
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How it works: Register or restart Corporation Tax
Find your company
Search by name or number. We fill in the public details.
Answer the questions
Answer only what the register cannot tell us.
Pay by card
Approve the details and pay the total shown.
We submit to HMRC
We check it and send it to HMRC. Updates come by email.
About this filing
Once a limited company starts to do business, or starts again after a dormant spell, HMRC needs to know it is active.
HMRC's guidance gives you 3 months from the start of the company's Corporation Tax accounting period. Our service checks your details, the director information and your HMRC authorisation, then prepares the active-company notification.
Read more
Nothing goes to HMRC until you approve it.
Register it yourself or let us prepare it
Look in the company's HMRC online account first, as some companies are set up for Corporation Tax when they are formed.
You can do this yourself in that account, signed in with the company's own Government Gateway user ID, or by letter to HMRC. Or you can ask us to prepare the notification for you, with HMRC authorisation in place.
If you use our service, we check the start date, accounts date and director details, prepare the notification and pass it to a director or company secretary for sign-off. Nothing is sent without that sign-off.
See also: When and how to register for Corporation Tax · Corporation Tax accounting periods explained
The start date we ask you for
Buying, selling, advertising, renting a property, employing someone or receiving income usually makes a company active, while early planning and contract talks do not. Our form asks for the date this first happened, because the tax accounting period runs from it.
See also: What counts as starting to do business
Information you need to register
- The company registration number from Companies House.
- The company's 10-digit Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR), which HMRC posts to the registered office. If you cannot find it, use the link below to request a copy.
- The day trading began, or began again. Your tax accounting period runs from that day.
- The date the company's accounts will be made up to.
- The principal place of business and a plain description of what the company does. The SIC code on the public register is a useful reference, but describe the actual business.
- The name and home address of every current director. A public service address is not a substitute.
- If relevant: any business taken over and who sold it, the parent company's name and registered office, and when PAYE first applied to the company.
See also: Lost the company UTR? Request a copy
Restarting a dormant company with us
A dormant company that starts trading again registers for Corporation Tax again, so give us the restart date and we prepare the notification in the same way. The new tax accounting period starts on that date, and the Companies House year end can stay as it is.
See also: Restarting after a dormant period
Corporation Tax registration step by step
If HMRC needs a signed notification or extra identity checks, we tell you what is still needed before anything is submitted.
HMRC writes to the registered office, so make sure the address Companies House holds is up to date.
- Work out the date the company started, or restarted, doing business. This is when the Corporation Tax accounting period begins, and the 3-month window runs from it.
- Find your company on SimpleFilings and answer the questions about its activity, start date, accounts date, directors and any group or PAYE position.
- Authorise SimpleFilings for this HMRC service through the route HMRC requires. Never send us your Government Gateway password.
- A director or company secretary reviews the prepared notification, confirms it is accurate and complete, and signs it off.
- HMRC records the company as active. Where the company's own business tax account is used, GOV.UK says HMRC sends a Corporation Tax activation code within 10 days (21 days if you live abroad) and tells you the deadline for paying Corporation Tax.
See also: Corporation Tax payment deadline · Company Tax Return (CT600) deadline
If HMRC was not told in time
Not telling HMRC can lead to a failure-to-notify penalty, set as a share of any tax left unpaid as a result, and interest can be charged on Corporation Tax paid late. The safest course is to register promptly once trading begins.
See also: Late registration penalties
Common Corporation Tax registration mistakes
- Assuming incorporation took care of Corporation Tax as well. Look in the HMRC online account to be sure.
- Giving us the Companies House number where the UTR is needed.
- Entering the date of incorporation when trading actually began later.
- Leaving HMRC unaware that a dormant company has restarted.
- Forgetting that a Company Tax Return is still needed even if the company makes a loss or owes no tax.
What this service does not include
This service covers the active-company notification only. Accounts, Company Tax Returns, calculating or paying Corporation Tax, and VAT or PAYE registration are outside it. Annual accounts and confirmation statements for Companies House are separate filings too.
File it yourself or use SimpleFilings
You can always file directly with HMRC. Here is how that compares with using SimpleFilings.
| Question | File it yourself | Use SimpleFilings |
|---|---|---|
| Cost | No fee | £4.99 (no HMRC fee) |
| Who fills in the form | You complete the HMRC form yourself. Official guidance | We do, from your answers, after checking the public register |
| Approval | You submit it yourself | You confirm you are authorised and approve the details before we submit |
What this request covers
We check the current director details, notification declaration and HMRC authorisation before preparing the active-company notification. A signed notification or further HMRC identity checks may still be needed.
Before you start
- SimpleFilings must have the appropriate HMRC agent registration, account and service access before acting for you.
- Your company must authorise us through the HMRC route required for this service. We will tell you if another step is needed.
- Do not send us your Government Gateway password. We use our own agent access.
What is not included
Preparing accounts, Corporation Tax returns or calculating and paying tax.
Fees
£4.99 SimpleFilings service fee. There is no HMRC fee to register for Corporation Tax. Any tax, penalties or interest the company owes are separate and paid to HMRC. Preparing accounts and Company Tax Returns is not included.
£4.99 SimpleFilings service fee. There is no HMRC application fee. Tax, penalties and other outstanding amounts are separate.
Total: £4.99. There is no HMRC fee for this request.
Step by step
- Find your company. Find your company by name or number. We fill in its public details from the Companies House register, such as the registered office, officers and people with significant control.
- Answer the questions. Answer only the questions we cannot fill in from the register, add any documents asked for and give the email address for your receipt and filing updates. Confirm that you are authorised to arrange the request and that you have checked and approve the details.
- Pay by card. Approve the details and pay the total shown by secure card payment. We check your answers before preparing the filing. There is no HMRC fee for this request.
- We submit to HMRC. We check your answers and the HMRC authorisation needed for this tax service, then submit to HMRC. Updates go to your email, and you can follow progress through your private request link. A payment receipt is not confirmation that HMRC has accepted the request.
Official sources
Guidance checked .
- GOV.UK: Add Corporation Tax services to your business tax account
- GOV.UK: Corporation Tax
- HMRC: Corporation Tax trading and non-trading (telling HMRC your company is active)
- GOV.UK: Dormant companies and associations
- GOV.UK: Restarting a non-trading or dormant company
- HMRC factsheet CC/FS11: penalties for failure to notify
Register or restart Corporation Tax: common questions
What details does your Corporation Tax registration service ask for?
The company number and UTR, the trading start (or restart) date, the accounts date, where the company mainly does business and what it does, and each current director's name and home address. Takeover, parent company or PAYE details are only needed if they apply.
How much does it cost to register for Corporation Tax?
HMRC charges nothing, and you can tell HMRC yourself through the company's business tax account. SimpleFilings charges £4.99 to check your details and prepare the notification for your approval. Any Corporation Tax the company later owes is separate.
What does the £4.99 Corporation Tax registration fee cover?
Checking your details and HMRC authorisation, and preparing the active-company notification for a director or company secretary to sign off. If HMRC wants a signed version or extra identity checks, we tell you what is still needed before submitting.
Do I need to send you my Government Gateway password?
No. You authorise SimpleFilings for this HMRC service through the route HMRC requires. Never send us your Government Gateway password.
Can you prepare the notification for a dormant company that is trading again?
Yes. Give us the date business restarted and the notification is prepared in the same way. HMRC's new tax period for the company runs from that date.
What is not included in the Corporation Tax registration service?
Accounts, Company Tax Returns, calculating or paying the tax, and VAT or PAYE registration. Filings at Companies House, such as annual accounts, are separate services.