Micro-entity accounts: who qualifies, what you file, and what 2028 changes

Do you qualify — the two-of-three test

For financial years beginning on or after 6 April 2025, the micro-entity size test is to meet at least two of three conditions: turnover not more than £1 million, balance sheet total (gross assets) not more than £500,000, and not more than 10 employees on average. For years that began before that date the older limits apply — £632,000 turnover and £316,000 gross assets, with the same 10-employee test. Eligibility also depends on statutory exclusions and group rules. After the first financial year, gaining or losing qualification normally requires the conditions to change for two consecutive years; the turnover limit is adjusted for a financial year that is not 12 months. Using the regime is optional: a company that qualifies may still choose to file small-company or full accounts.

What micro-entity accounts contain

Micro-entity accounts filed at Companies House today are a balance sheet with two short notes at its foot — financial commitments and guarantees, and directors' advances or credits. No directors' report is required, no audit is required for most, and the profit and loss account is not filed publicly until the April 2028 changes take effect. This is the smallest full-accounts filing available, which is exactly why it is worth knowing whether you qualify: the alternative is materially more work.

Micro-entity or dormant — the line that decides your filing

These are different statuses answering different questions, and a company can be one without the other. Dormant means no significant accounting transactions at all during the period; micro-entity describes company size and eligibility for a simplified accounts regime; it does not require the company to trade. A dormant company may also qualify as a micro-entity. The practical test is the same one that decides dormancy: a single bank charge or accountancy fee paid from the company's own account breaks dormancy — and a company that has broken dormancy must prepare non-dormant accounts. It may choose the micro-entity regime if it meets the thresholds and the other statutory eligibility rules; being small alone is not enough. If you are unsure which side of that line you are on, the dormancy test is the one to answer first.

Deadlines and penalties are the same

Being a micro-entity changes what the accounts contain, not when they are due. The deadline is 9 months after the accounting reference date (up to 21 months from incorporation for a first, longer-than-12-month period), and the late-filing penalty runs on the same bands as every other private company: £150, then £375 past one month, £750 past three and £1,500 past six, doubled if you were late the previous year too. The confirmation statement remains a separate annual filing with its own date.

What changes on 1 April 2028

From 1 April 2028 micro-entities must deliver a profit and loss account to Companies House, and accounts must be filed by commercial software in iXBRL format — the web and paper routes close. The government has announced an option not to publish the profit and loss on the public register, but the regulations creating that option have not been made yet, so treat non-publication as unconfirmed until they are. Abridged accounts are abolished in the same package.

Official sources

• GOV.UK — Micro-entities, small and dormant companies
• Companies Act 2006, s.384A — Companies qualifying as micro-entities
• GOV.UK — File your company annual accounts

Sources checked 5 October 2026.