Companies House filings explained: a non-accountant’s guide

Companies House gets a lot of stick for being too easy to file rubbish at. Fair enough. But for the determined reader, it is also the richest free corporate dataset in the world — if you know what each form is actually saying.

Companies House publishes everything a UK limited company is required to file. Once you know what each filing means, a company’s history reads like a story.

Confirmation statement (CS01)

An annual snapshot of the company’s key data: registered office, directors, shareholders, PSCs and SIC codes. A missing or overdue CS01 is one of the clearest signs the company is being neglected.

Annual accounts

Filed yearly. Even micro-entity accounts include the balance sheet date, net assets and whether the company is dormant. Late accounts trigger an automatic fine and, eventually, strike-off.

Officer changes (AP01, TM01, CH01)

• AP01 — appointment of a new director
• TM01 — termination (resignation/removal) of a director
• CH01 — change of director’s details

A flurry of TM01s shortly before a default is a classic warning sign.

PSC filings (PSC01–PSC09)

Notify Companies House of changes to Persons of Significant Control. PSC09 is the “we don’t have full information yet” filing — rarely a good look on a trading company.

Charges (MR01, MR04)

A charge is security registered over the company’s assets — usually for a loan or invoice-finance facility. Undischarged charges matter when you are giving credit because they sit ahead of unsecured creditors (you) in an insolvency.

Other useful filings

• SH01 — allotment of new shares (capital injection)
• AA02 — dormant company accounts
• DS01 — voluntary strike-off application
• LIQ02 / NOTICE — liquidation and winding-up notices

Reading the timeline

A healthy small company files its CS01 and accounts roughly on time, occasionally appoints or removes a director, and sometimes registers a charge. A timeline with sudden gaps, last-minute filings or a flurry of changes deserves a deeper look. Cross-reference with red flags in UK company accounts and how to spot a phoenix company.

Stop translating filings in your head

CompanyCheckr labels every filing in plain English on the timeline — "director resigned", "charge registered", "accounts overdue" — so you don't have to remember whether a CH01 is the one you worry about. Try it on any UK company, or create an account to get an email the moment a watched filing lands.