Run a Limited Company? Here's What You're Still Responsible For

<p><strong>"I've got an accountant now… so that's everything sorted, right?"</strong></p><p>It would be lovely if the answer was yes.</p><p>For many business owners, hiring an accountant feels like taking a huge weight off their shoulders. Suddenly, there's someone to deal with the tax returns, explain the jargon and remind you about deadlines.</p><p>That's exactly what we're here for.</p><p>But there's one thing that's worth knowing…</p><p>Even with an accountant by your side, <strong>you</strong> are still legally responsible for your limited company.</p><p>Don't panic.</p><p>That doesn't mean you need to become an expert in tax law or spend your evenings reading Companies House guidance.</p><p>It simply means understanding what your business is expected to do and making sure nothing slips through the cracks.</p><h2>Think of your company like a car…</h2><p>A car needs an MOT. It needs servicing. It needs insurance. It needs road tax.</p><p>Miss one of those things and eventually it catches up with you.</p><p>Running a limited company isn't all that different.</p><p>There are a handful of things that need doing throughout the year to keep everything running smoothly.</p><h2>1. Annual accounts</h2><p>Your annual accounts show the financial position of your company and must be filed every year with Companies House.</p><p>Leave them too late and Companies House won't send you a friendly reminder. They'll send you a late filing penalty instead.</p><h2>2. Confirmation statements</h2><p>This one catches people out all the time.</p><p>"Nothing's changed this year."</p><p>Perfect. You still need to file it.</p><p>A confirmation statement isn't about reporting changes. It's about confirming the information Companies House already holds is still correct — your registered office, directors, shareholders, and anyone with significant control of the business.</p><h2>3. Corporation Tax</h2><p>There are <strong>two</strong> deadlines. Not one.</p><p>The first is when your Corporation Tax needs paying. The second is when the Corporation Tax return itself has to be submitted. They're different dates.</p><h2>4. VAT</h2><p>If your business is VAT registered, HMRC will expect VAT returns throughout the year — for many businesses that's every three months. Any VAT that's due also needs paying on time.</p><h2>5. Payroll</h2><p>Even if you're the only employee in your business, payroll still has rules. Every time you're paid, information is sent to HMRC through Real Time Information (RTI).</p><h2>6. Changes to your company</h2><p>If important information changes — a new director, someone leaving, a change of registered office, new shares issued — Companies House usually needs to know.</p><p>It's always easier to tell us when something changes than six months later when we're preparing your accounts.</p><h2>The biggest mistakes we see</h2><p>Most of the time it's not complicated tax rules that cause problems.</p><p>It's usually things like: someone assumes something has already been filed, a deadline is missed, a letter gets ignored because nobody recognises what it is, or a director forgets to mention they've moved premises or appointed another shareholder.</p><p>Small things. Until they aren't.</p><p>The good news is that none of this needs to feel overwhelming. That's what we're here for.</p>