Limited Company Accountants
Statutory accounts, corporation tax, confirmation statements, payroll, VAT and dividends for owner-managed companies across North London and Hertfordshire. One fixed monthly fee, every deadline on a calendar you can see.
A limited company comes with a fixed set of obligations that repeat every year: accounts to Companies House within nine months of the year end, a corporation tax return to HMRC within twelve, the tax itself within nine months and a day, a confirmation statement on the anniversary of incorporation, monthly RTI submissions if anyone is paid a salary, and quarterly VAT returns once you are registered. None of it is difficult. All of it carries a penalty if it is late.
We act for owner-managed companies across North London and Hertfordshire, from single-director consultancies to trading businesses with a few million in turnover and thirty staff. Most come to us from a firm where they never spoke to the same person twice, or from doing it themselves and realising the year end had become a month of stress.
This page explains what a fixed-fee limited company package covers, what the corporation tax and dividend numbers look like in 2026/27, how to pay yourself without creating a problem in the loan account, and the questions directors ask us most often.
What limited companies usually need help with
Statutory accounts and Companies House
Accounts must be filed within nine months of the year end in the format your company size allows, and the rules on what small and micro companies can leave out are tightening. We prepare and file them well inside the deadline, in the least disclosure the law permits.
Corporation tax
Profits up to £50,000 are taxed at 19%, profits over £250,000 at 25%, and the band between at an effective 26.5% through marginal relief. Associated companies share the thresholds. We prepare the computation, claim the allowances and file the CT600 with the accounts.
Confirmation statement and identity verification
The confirmation statement is due every twelve months and the Companies House fee is £50. Since November 2025 directors and people with significant control must verify their identity with Companies House. We file the statement and walk you through verification.
Dividends done properly
A dividend can only be paid from accumulated realised profit, and it needs a board minute and a voucher. Paying one without distributable reserves is unlawful and can be reclaimed from the shareholder. We check the reserves before every dividend and produce the paperwork.
Directors’ loan accounts
Money drawn that is not salary, dividend or expenses sits on the loan account. If it is still outstanding nine months after the year end the company pays a section 455 charge of 35.75%, and loans over £10,000 create a benefit in kind. We keep the account reconciled through the year so this never happens by accident.
Payroll for directors and staff
Directors’ salaries go through PAYE with RTI submissions each pay period. Employer National Insurance is 15% above £5,000 a year, and the £10,500 Employment Allowance is available once the company has an employee other than a sole director. We run the payroll and set the salary to make the most of the rules.
Services for limited companies
Accounting services
Year-end statutory accounts, corporation tax computation and CT600, confirmation statement and Companies House filings.
Learn more →Bookkeeping
Xero bookkeeping reconciled every week or month, so the year end is a review rather than a reconstruction.
Learn more →Payroll
Director and staff payroll with RTI, auto-enrolment, P60s and P11Ds for benefits in kind.
Learn more →VAT advice and returns
Registration, scheme selection and quarterly Making Tax Digital returns filed from your books.
Learn more →Tax planning
Salary and dividend mix, pension contributions, capital allowances, R&D relief and planning the year end before it arrives.
Learn more →Management reporting
Monthly management accounts and forecasts for companies that are growing, hiring or talking to lenders.
Learn more →Your limited company calendar
Every company has the same set of dates, anchored to its year end and its incorporation date. Statutory accounts are due at Companies House nine months after the year end, or 21 months after incorporation for the first set. Corporation tax is payable nine months and one day after the year end, and the CT600 return is due twelve months after it. The confirmation statement is due within 14 days of the anniversary of incorporation or the last statement. VAT returns are due one month and seven days after each quarter. RTI submissions go to HMRC on or before every payday, and P60s must be issued by 31 May with P11Ds by 6 July.
Miss the accounts deadline and Companies House charges a penalty from £150 rising to £1,500 for a private company, and the penalty doubles if you were late the previous year too. Late corporation tax returns start at £100. A confirmation statement filed late is a criminal offence for the directors and can lead to the company being struck off. We put every date on a shared calendar at the start of the engagement and work to internal deadlines well ahead of the statutory ones.
Corporation tax in 2026/27
Corporation tax is charged on the company's taxable profit for its accounting period: trading profit after allowable expenses and capital allowances, plus any property or investment income and chargeable gains. The small profits rate of 19% applies up to £50,000, the main rate of 25% applies from £250,000, and marginal relief tapers between the two so that the effective rate on profits in that band is 26.5%. The thresholds are divided by the number of associated companies, which catches directors who run more than one company.
Capital allowances remain generous. The £1 million annual investment allowance gives a full deduction for most plant and equipment in the year of purchase, and full expensing does the same for qualifying main-rate assets without a cap. Employer pension contributions are deductible when paid. R&D relief under the merged scheme gives a taxable credit worth 20% of qualifying spend, with a higher rate for loss-making companies whose R&D is a large share of their costs. Our corporation tax calculator gives a quick estimate; the planning happens before the year end, when purchases and contributions can still be timed.
- Computation and CT600 prepared with the accounts, not months later
- Annual investment allowance and full expensing claimed on qualifying assets
- Associated company thresholds checked where directors have more than one company
- Pre-year-end review so purchases, pensions and dividends are timed correctly
Paying yourself: salary, dividends and the loan account
Most owner-directors take a modest salary and the rest as dividends. A salary of £12,570 uses the personal allowance, secures a state pension year and is deductible for corporation tax. Dividends come from post-tax profit and are taxed personally at 0% on the first £500, then 10.75%, 35.75% and 39.35% across the income tax bands. Employer pension contributions are the third route and the most efficient for profit you do not need to spend now.
The mistake we see most often is treating the business bank account as a personal one. Every transfer that is not salary, a declared dividend or a reimbursed expense goes to the director's loan account. If the account is overdrawn at the year end and not repaid within nine months, the company pays 35.75% of the balance to HMRC under section 455, refundable only when the loan is repaid. If it exceeds £10,000 at any point there is a benefit in kind on the interest as well. Reconciling the loan account every month, and declaring dividends properly when reserves allow, keeps the position clean.
Why limited companies choose IAK
- Fixed monthly fee covering accounts, tax, payroll, VAT and the confirmation statement
- Every statutory deadline on a shared calendar with internal targets ahead of it
- Dividends checked against reserves and documented every time
- Loan account reconciled monthly, not discovered at the year end
- Pre-year-end tax review as standard
- One named accountant who knows the company
Frequently asked questions
How much does a limited company accountant cost?
A limited company package with bookkeeping, payroll, VAT, statutory accounts, corporation tax, confirmation statement and director self assessment typically costs between £150 and £450 a month depending on transaction volume and headcount. We quote a fixed fee in writing before we start.
What does the year-end accounts service include?
Full statutory accounts in the format your company qualifies for, the corporation tax computation and CT600, filing at Companies House and HMRC, iXBRL tagging, and a meeting to go through the results and the tax due. Bookkeeping to get the records to trial balance is included in our monthly packages.
Can you take over part way through the year?
Yes. We send the professional clearance letter to your previous accountant, collect the records and trial balance, and continue from there. Most takeovers complete inside three weeks, and we do not charge to switch.
Do I have to verify my identity with Companies House?
Yes. Since November 2025 all directors and people with significant control must verify their identity with Companies House, either directly through GOV.UK One Login or through an authorised agent. New directors verify before appointment; existing ones had to do so at their next confirmation statement. We guide you through it.
Can I pay a dividend if the company made a loss this year?
Only if there are accumulated profits from earlier years that have not been distributed. Dividends are paid from retained profit, not from cash or from this year's result alone. We check the reserves before every dividend so you never pay one that is unlawful.
What if my company is dormant or I want to close it?
A dormant company still files accounts and a confirmation statement each year, though the accounts are simpler. If you want to close, a strike-off works for companies with little left in them, and a members' voluntary liquidation lets you take larger reserves out as capital. We handle both, and we plan the timing so the tax is minimised.
Do you offer a registered office address?
Ask us. Many clients use our Cuffley office as their registered office so statutory post comes straight to the people dealing with it. It also keeps your home address off the public register.
Guides and calculators on this topic
Free reading and tools from our insights library if you want the detail before you speak to us.
One fee, every deadline, no surprises
Send us your last set of accounts and we will tell you what a fixed monthly fee would cover, where the tax planning opportunities are, and whether anything in the current filings needs attention.