Limited Company Accountants in London

Running a limited company brings a fixed set of legal obligations that arrive every year whether the company thrived, struggled or barely traded:

• Statutory accounts — annual accounts prepared to the required standards and filed at Companies House within 9 months of your year end
• Corporation tax return (CT600) — filed with HMRC within 12 months of the year end, with the tax itself payable earlier — 9 months and 1 day after year end
• Confirmation statement — an annual snapshot for Companies House confirming your registered details, directors, shareholders and people with significant control
• Director responsibilities — most directors also file a personal self assessment return, particularly where dividends are taken

Late accounts at Companies House trigger automatic penalties starting at £150 and escalating to £1,500 for a private company (doubled if late two years running), while late CT600s and late corporation tax bring separate HMRC penalties and interest. As your accountants, we track every deadline so nothing is ever left to memory.

Since April 2023 the UK has had two corporation tax rates with a tapered band between them:

Annual profits	Rate
Up to £50,000	19% — small profits rate
£50,000 to £250,000	Marginal relief — an effective rate rising gradually between 19% and 25%
£250,000 and above	25% — main rate

Two traps are worth knowing. First, profits in the marginal band suffer an effective rate of 26.5% on each extra pound — higher than the main rate — which makes timing of income and expenditure around the £50,000 mark genuinely valuable planning territory. Second, the thresholds are divided between associated companies, so owning two related companies halves the bands for each. We model this for clients before year end, while there is still time to act.

For most owner-managed companies, the biggest recurring tax question is how to take money out. The classic structure is a modest director's salary — set around the National Insurance thresholds so it stays tax-efficient while preserving your state pension record — topped up with dividends paid from post-tax profits, which attract lower personal tax rates than salary and no National Insurance.

But the right mix shifts with your circumstances and with every Budget: the dividend allowance has been cut sharply in recent years, employer's National Insurance changes alter the arithmetic, and pension contributions paid by the company are often the most tax-efficient extraction of all — deductible for corporation tax and free of income tax and NI when paid in. We review your remuneration structure every year, not just when you first sign up, and document dividends properly with board minutes and vouchers so they stand up to HMRC scrutiny.

Filing on time keeps you legal; good advice makes the company worth more to you. Alongside the statutory work we help directors with:

• Pre-year-end tax planning — timing capital purchases to use capital allowances (including full expensing on qualifying plant and machinery), pension contributions and bonus decisions before the year closes
• Claiming every relief available — from the Employment Allowance to R&D relief where genuine qualifying development work is being done
• Director's loan accounts — kept on the right side of the s455 tax charge and benefit-in-kind rules
• Management figures — periodic profit and cash reporting so decisions are made on current numbers, not last year's accounts
• Growth and exit — advice on bringing in shareholders, restructuring, and building towards an eventual sale or succession

Trading through a limited company brings limited liability, credibility with larger customers, and — at some profit levels — a lower overall tax bill than sole-trader status. But it also brings statutory accounts, a CT600, a confirmation statement, stricter record-keeping and your details on the public register. Since the dividend allowance was cut, the pure tax saving from incorporation is smaller than many online calculators suggest.

We give you the real comparison for your numbers: total tax and National Insurance as a sole trader versus as a company, alongside the extra costs and obligations. If incorporation makes sense, we handle the company formation, register you for corporation tax and PAYE, and set the structure up correctly from day one. If it doesn't, we'll tell you that too.

If your current accountant is slow to reply, vague on fees, or files everything at the last minute, moving is far simpler than most directors expect:

1. We talk — a free meeting at our New Eltham office or by phone to understand the company and quote a fixed monthly fee.
2. You send one email — telling your current accountant you're moving. Professional courtesy handles the rest.
3. We collect everything — we request professional clearance and your records directly from the outgoing firm, and take over HMRC and Companies House authorisations.
4. Nothing gets missed — we review upcoming deadlines immediately so the handover never causes a late filing.

Bayar Hughes & Co has acted for limited companies across South East London since 1991 — many of our clients have been with us for decades, which we think says more than any advert.