The BIG Compliance Guide

Running a business is not just about doing the work and getting paid.

There is usually some admin lurking in the background, often with a deadline attached and a real talent for becoming annoying if ignored.

This guide covers the main compliance obligations for UK businesses, including:

• sole traders and freelancers

• landlords, including accidental landlords

• limited companies

• employers

• Companies House requirements

Most of the tax and company filing rules below are UK-wide. But some property and landlord rules can vary more by nation and local authority, so that part always needs a bit more care.

The goal here is simple:

help you understand what needs doing and roughly when it needs to be done.

1. Sole traders and freelancers

If you work for yourself, your compliance list is usually simpler than that of a limited company.

Usually.

The core jobs are fairly straightforward:

• tell HMRC you need Self Assessment

• do that by 5 October after the end of the tax year when you first need to file

• keep proper records of income and allowable expenses

• file the tax return on time

• pay the tax and National Insurance due

• keep an eye on turnover in case VAT registration becomes an issue

The key Self Assessment dates are still the usual ones:

• 31 January online tax return deadline

• 31 January tax payment deadline

• 31 July second payment on account, where payments on account apply

So for many self-employed people, compliance is less about complicated rules and more about not leaving everything until January.

2. Landlords and accidental landlords

A lot of people become landlords almost by accident.

It happens when someone moves in with a partner, keeps their old property, inherits somewhere, or rents a place out temporarily.

Once rental income starts coming in, it becomes part of your tax reporting. That usually means declaring the income through Self Assessment, keeping records of rent and costs, and understanding which expenses are actually allowable.

Typical landlord costs can include letting agent fees, repairs, maintenance, and landlord insurance. But mortgage interest is the classic gotcha: for most residential landlords, it is no longer a normal profit deduction and instead usually works through a basic-rate tax reduction.

There is also the non-tax side.

Depending on the property and where it is, landlords may need to deal with things like:

• gas safety checks

• electrical safety

• EPC requirements

• deposit protection

• licensing rules

• repair and health-and-safety duties

This is one area where it is worth being clear: the tax reporting is fairly familiar, but the legal rules around the property itself can vary much more depending on where it is and what type of tenancy it has.

3. Making Tax Digital

This one is no longer “coming soon” for the first group.

From 6 April 2026, sole traders and landlords with qualifying income over £50,000 now have to use Making Tax Digital for Income Tax. The threshold then drops to £30,000 from 6 April 2027, and HMRC’s published timetable says it then drops again to £20,000 from 6 April 2028.

If MTD applies, businesses need to:

• keep digital records

• send quarterly updates using compatible software

• complete the year-end filing through software as well

For businesses using the standard quarterly periods, the first deadlines are:

• 7 August 2026

• 7 November 2026

• 7 February 2027

• 7 May 2027

So the old January rhythm does not disappear. It just gets joined by quarterly reporting.

4. VAT compliance

If your VAT-taxable turnover goes over £90,000 in a rolling 12-month period, you normally need to register for VAT. You also have to register if you expect taxable turnover to go over £90,000 in the next 30 days alone.

And yes, this is still one of the easiest places to get caught out:

it is not based on the tax year. It is based on a rolling 12-month period.

Once VAT-registered, most businesses need to:

• keep the required records

• file VAT Returns on time

• pay any VAT due on time

• follow Making Tax Digital for VAT rules unless exempt

VAT returns are usually due 1 calendar month and 7 days after the end of the VAT period, and that is normally also the payment deadline.

5. Limited company compliance

Limited companies have obligations with both HMRC and Companies House, which is why the list gets longer.

The usual jobs are:

• keep proper accounting records

• file annual accounts with Companies House

• file a Company Tax Return

• pay Corporation Tax

• file a confirmation statement

• tell Companies House about important company changes

For most private companies:

• first accounts are usually due 21 months after incorporation

• later annual accounts are usually due 9 months after the year end

A confirmation statement must be filed at least once every 12 months and within 14 days of the end of the review period, even if nothing has changed.

No one gets excited about confirmation statements.

Unfortunately, Companies House still expects them.

6. Director identity verification

This is one that many directors still have not properly sorted out.

Companies House identity verification became a legal requirement from 18 November 2025. But that date was not one universal deadline for everyone. It marked the start of a 12-month transition period.

From that point:

• new directors need to verify their identity before they can be appointed

• existing directors usually verify alongside their next confirmation statement during the transition period

• verification can be done through GOV.UK One Login or through an Authorised Corporate Service Provider, and GOV.UK One Login may direct some people to a participating Post Office route

If you miss the requirement, Companies House says there can be consequences including offences, financial penalties, and filing restrictions. So this is not one to leave sitting in the “deal with later” pile.

7. Employer responsibilities

If you employ staff, the compliance list grows again.

Even if the only employee is you as the director.

You normally need to:

• register as an employer with HMRC before the first payday

• run payroll

• send payroll reports to HMRC on or before payday

• pay PAYE and National Insurance on time

• provide payslips

• keep employee records

Because we run payroll for many clients, the practical deadline is not just HMRC’s one. It is getting the payroll information to us in good time before payday.

That means things like:

• new starters

• leavers

• hours worked

• bonuses

• pay rises

• statutory pay changes

• anything else that affects pay

If the information turns up late, the payroll process gets tighter very quickly.

Which, as a general rule, nobody enjoys.

Minimum wage

Employers must make sure workers are paid at least the National Minimum Wage or National Living Wage, and the rates changed again from 1 April 2026. That is one of those areas where using last year’s figure by mistake can cause a completely avoidable problem.

Holiday entitlement

Most workers are entitled to 5.6 weeks’ paid holiday a year. For someone working 5 days a week, that is usually 28 days.

Statutory Sick Pay

From 6 April 2026, Statutory Sick Pay is payable from the first full day of sickness absence and is available to more employees.

So if you are employing people, this is no longer just a “good to know later” point. It is now live.

8. Workplace pensions

If you employ staff, you may have workplace pension duties.

Broadly, employers need to:

• assess staff

• enrol eligible staff into a workplace pension

• make the required contributions

• keep pension records

Once contributions have been deducted, they usually need to reach the pension scheme by the 22nd of the following month, or the 19th if paid by cheque or other non-electronic method.

So yes, pensions sit in the same bucket as payroll: not dramatic, but very easy to get wrong if ignored.

9. Employee benefits

Employee benefits used to sit mainly in the P11D world.

That is still true for many employers.

A lot of benefits can be taxed through payroll instead, but if benefits are not payrolled, the usual year-end reporting still applies and employers may need to file P11Ds and a P11D(b) by 6 July, with Class 1A NIC usually due by 22 July if paying electronically.

Many benefits can be payrolled voluntarily, but the official move to mandatory payrolling of most benefits is now scheduled for 6 April 2027, not 2026. HMRC also said employers had until 5 April 2026 to register for the current voluntary payrolling service for the 2026/27 tax year.

So for a guide published on 6 April 2026, the clean summary is:

• payrolling exists

• P11D reporting still exists

• mandatory payrolling is the next phase, not today’s phase

10. Data protection and the ICO

This section needed a bit more care.

It is not quite right to say every business holding customer names, emails or phone numbers must automatically pay the ICO fee.

The more accurate version is that organisations that process personal data as a controller generally need to pay the data protection fee unless an exemption applies. The ICO says some exemptions exist, including where personal data is used only for things like staff administration, accounts and records, or advertising and marketing for your own business.

So the sensible wording here is:

a lot of businesses do need to think about the ICO fee, but it is worth checking properly rather than assuming either way.

11. Construction Industry Scheme

If you operate in construction, another layer of compliance may apply.

Under CIS, contractors may need to deduct tax from subcontractors, file monthly returns and pay deductions over to HMRC. Subcontractors may also need to register.

The monthly CIS return is normally due by the 19th of each month following the end of the tax month, and deductions are usually paid over by the 22nd if paying electronically, or the 19th if paying by post.

CIS is one of those systems that is fine when it is running properly and deeply annoying when it is not.

12. What makes compliance run smoothly

Even when an accountant is handling a lot of the formal filing, compliance still works best as a partnership.

The businesses that stay out of trouble usually do the boring things well:

• keep records reasonably up to date

• send information across in good time

• read the reminder emails

• approve accounts and returns promptly

• flag changes early instead of after the deadline has passed

That sounds obvious.

It is also the bit that saves the most stress.

13. The compliance timeline

Here is the simplified version most businesses actually care about.

January

• Self Assessment online return due

• Self Assessment payment due

July

• second payment on account, where applicable

• P11D / P11D(b) reporting deadline is 6 July

• Class 1A NIC usually due by 22 July electronically

Throughout the year

• payroll submissions on or before payday

• VAT returns, if registered

• pension contributions

• CIS returns, where relevant

Company year end + 9 months

• annual accounts usually due to Companies House

Company year end + 9 months and 1 day

• Corporation Tax usually due

Company year end + 12 months

• Company Tax Return usually due

Once every year

• confirmation statement due within 14 days of the end of the review period

Final thought

Compliance is not the exciting part of running a business.

No one starts a business because they dream of filing confirmation statements, checking VAT thresholds, or reading up on Companies House identity rules.

But staying on top of the basics keeps things manageable.

Ignore them, and they tend to turn into penalties, fines and stress.

Which is rarely a brilliant business strategy.