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Registering for Corporation Tax with HMRC

Every limited company must register with HMRC for Corporation Tax no later than 3 months after starting any kind of business activity. Here's what you need to do and what information you'll need to hand.

What is corporation tax

Corporation tax is a tax charged on the profits of a limited company. In the UK, companies pay it on their taxable profits. This includes trading profits, investment income, and capital gains.

A few key points for UK companies:

  • The main rate is currently 25% for profits over £250,000
  • A small profits rate of 19% applies to profits under £50,000
  • Companies with profits in between pay a tapered rate
  • It's paid to HMRC, usually 9 months and 1 day after the end of the accounting period
  • Companies must file a Company Tax Return (CT600) even if they make a loss or owe nothing

How to register

To register your company as 'active' for Corporation Tax, you will need to sign up for HMRC's online services by creating a Government Gateway user ID and password.

👉 Sign up for HMRC's online services

 

Once logged in, you will be asked to provide the following details:

  • Company name

  • Company registration number (CRN) — found on your certificate of incorporation

  • Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR) — HMRC will send this to your registered office address within 2–3 weeks of the company being formed. If you are using our address service, we will scan and email this to you. You can also view it under My Mail in your online dashboard.

  • Start date of trading activity — this determines your company's accounting period for Corporation Tax, which is normally a 12-month period that aligns with the financial year in your annual accounts

  • Trading address — the main address where the majority of your business activities are carried out. If you use our registered office address, please note this should not be used as your trading address, as you are not physically based there.

  • SIC code(s) — the Standard Industrial Classification codes that identify your principal business activities. These were selected when you formed your company.

  • Accounting reference date (ARD) — the date your annual accounts are made up to, which usually falls on the anniversary of the last day of the month your company was formed.

What happens next?

Once your registration is complete, HMRC will write to your registered office address with confirmation. This letter will include the deadlines for paying Corporation Tax and filing your Company Tax Return and annual accounts.

💡 You can find out more about Corporation Tax registration here.