A limited company comes with a handful of deadlines, and they don't line up. Each one is pinned to a different clock — your year-end, your VAT quarter, payday, the calendar — so there's no single date to circle. They aren't all tax, and they don't all apply to everyone, but the ones that do apply carry real penalties for missing them. Here's what each one is.
Corporation tax payment — nine months and one day after your year-end
Your company pays its corporation tax nine months and one day after the end of its accounting year. It's an unusual-looking date, but it's fixed to your own year-end rather than a national one, so work it out once and it's the same every year.
Corporation tax return (CT600) — twelve months after your year-end
The return itself — the CT600, filed with your accounts and tax computations — is due twelve months after your accounting year ends. So the payment comes first and the return follows: pay at nine months and a day, file by twelve months. Most companies prepare and file both together, well ahead of the later date.
VAT — one month and seven days after each quarter
If you're VAT-registered, you file a VAT return and pay what's due one month and seven days after the end of each VAT quarter. Every business has its own quarterly "stagger", so your quarter-ends depend on when you registered — check yours rather than assuming calendar quarters. Most businesses file quarterly.
PAYE — monthly, if you pay yourself a salary
If you take a salary — which most directors do — you're running a payroll, and that reports to HMRC monthly. You send a submission each time you pay yourself, and any PAYE tax and National Insurance is paid over monthly. For a solo director on a small salary the amounts are modest, but the monthly rhythm still applies. If you pay yourself in dividends only, with no salary, this one doesn't apply to you.
Company accounts at Companies House — nine months after your year-end (not tax, but it counts)
This one isn't a tax deadline — it's a Companies House filing — but it belongs on the same calendar. Your annual accounts are due at Companies House nine months after your year-end. Your very first accounts are the exception: they're due twenty-one months after the date you incorporated. The late-filing penalty is automatic, so give this the same weight as the tax dates.
Confirmation statement — once a year
Companies House needs a confirmation statement once a year, confirming your company's details are up to date. It's a check on the register rather than a tax return, but it's still a filing deadline worth having in the calendar.
Self Assessment — 31 January, and sometimes 31 July
Your personal tax return and any personal tax due are filed and paid by 31 January, for the tax year that ended the previous April. As a director drawing dividends, you'll usually need to file one. You may also have a payment on account due 31 July — an advance instalment towards the next year's bill, which HMRC asks for once your Self Assessment liability passes a certain size.
Making Tax Digital for Income Tax — only if you're also a sole trader or landlord
This one isn't a limited-company deadline. Making Tax Digital for Income Tax applies to sole-trader and rental income, so it affects you only if you run something as a sole trader, or let out property, alongside your company. If that income is over £50,000, MTD for Income Tax applies to you from 6 April 2026: digital records and quarterly updates instead of a single return a year. The quarterly updates are reports only — there are no quarterly payments, so your tax is still paid on the normal Self Assessment dates. The £50,000 test is on gross income — turnover before expenses — not profit. If everything you earn runs through your limited company, it doesn't apply to you.
The simple system
Put the dates that apply to you in a calendar with a reminder a month before each. That one hour of setup is what turns tax deadlines from a recurring scramble into something that just happens on schedule.
Frequently asked questions
When is corporation tax due? The payment is due nine months and one day after the end of your accounting year; the return (the CT600) is due twelve months after. So you pay first, then file.
When do I file and pay VAT? If you're VAT-registered, one month and seven days after the end of each VAT quarter. Your quarter-ends depend on your registration "stagger", so check yours rather than assuming calendar quarters.
Do I have monthly PAYE deadlines? If you pay yourself a salary, yes — running a payroll reports to HMRC monthly, with any PAYE tax and National Insurance paid over monthly. If you take dividends only, with no salary, it doesn't apply.
When is the Self Assessment deadline? 31 January, covering the tax year that ended the previous April. You may also have a payment on account due 31 July. Directors drawing dividends usually need to file.
Does Making Tax Digital apply to me? MTD for Income Tax applies to sole-trader and property income, not to your limited company. So it affects you only if you also have that kind of income over £50,000 (gross, not profit) — then it applies from 6 April 2026, with quarterly reports (but no quarterly payments).
Work with us
Keeping your deadlines tracked and your filings in on time is a core part of what we do, so you never have to hold them in your head. Book a call with Carr Accounting Studio.
General information, not advice. UK figures 2026/27 — they change, and your situation may differ. Written by David Carr, chartered accountant and founder of Carr Accounting Studio.