There are significant changes proposed under the Economic Crime & Corporate Transparency Act 2023 (ECCTA) for how companies report their financial information and what financial information they must publicly report. This will particularly affect small and micro entities and the filing of their accounts, as these companies have, to date, been able to file public accounts with minimal information. The changes are designed to address the insufficient (and sometimes inaccurate) financial information currently on the companies register.

Timing of changes
On 9 June 2026, the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) confirmed in a Written Statement to Parliament that the accounts reforms set out in the ECCTA will take effect from April 2028, rather than the originally planned date of April 2027, to give companies and software providers more time to prepare.

What is changing?

• All small companies and micro entities to file profit and loss accounts with Companies House as other companies do. However, in a concession to stakeholder concerns, the Government will allow them to opt out of having these published on the public register. Also, the planned change to require small companies to file a Directors’ Report will no longer apply, as the Government has since announced it will remove the requirement for all companies to produce a Directors’ Report.
• All UK registered companies to file their annual accounts in iXBRL format from April 2028, with web and paper-based filing routes closed for accounts filings from that date.
• A strengthened eligibility statement for all companies claiming an audit exemption, requiring directors to specify which exemption is being claimed and confirm that the company qualifies for the exemption (s 57 ECCTA).
• Removal of the option for companies to file abridged accounts (s 58 ECCTA 2023).
• Requiring component parts of the filed accounts and reports to all be filed together.
• In addition, secondary legislation will be introduced to reduce the number of times a company can shorten its accounting reference period and introduce annotations to the register where a company has not complied with a notice regarding compliance of its accounts with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006.

Companies should begin considering their software and filing arrangements now and consider how their published accounts will meet the new requirements, particularly if they have been abridged or filleted to date.

In addition, Companies should also consider whether they want increased public financial transparency and what this may mean for their customers, suppliers, lenders, investors, and employees.  Does a company want greater visibility of their company accounts and what are the potential negative implications of not being transparent? 

Companies should consult the available guidance: Changes to UK company law, Guidance: Preparing and filing Companies House accounts, and Using software to file your companies accounts.

Changes to company size thresholds

As of 6th April 2025, company size thresholds changed. A company is classified as a micro-entity, small, medium or large by reference to its turnover, balance sheet total and number of employees. It will fall into the next category up of it crosses two of the three thresholds for that category. The Companies (Accounts and Reports) (Amendment and Transitional Provision) Regulations 2024 applies to financial years beginning on or after 6 April 2025. The Regulations increase the monetary thresholds but not employee thresholds. The following adjustments now apply to small & micro-entities:

• Small entities – the turnover threshold increased from £10.2 million to £15 million, and the balance sheet threshold increased from £5.1 million to £7.5 million. The number of employees remains at 50 employees or fewer.
• Micro-entities – the turnover threshold increased from £632,000 to £1,000,000 and the balance sheet threshold increased from £316,000 to £500,000. The number of employees remains at 10 employees or fewer.

Many companies may therefore be able to move down a size category and be entitled to the accompanying reduction in reporting requirements.