PRESS NOTICE
CHPN 12/05(GEN)
DATE 28 November 2005

Gordon Brown, Chancellor of the Exchequer, announced today, at the CBI’s Annual Conference, that HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) and Companies House will consult companies and their professional advisers about proposals to join up the filing of company tax returns and the delivery of accounts to the Registrar of Companies.

Welcoming the Chancellor’s announcement, Claire Clancy, Registrar of Companies, said:

“I am very pleased that the work Companies House and HMRC are doing together should be supported at such a high level. Our proposals reflect the government’s better regulation agenda. They present a major opportunity to ease the amount of red tape companies have to deal with, and they will make it easier for companies to meet their legal obligations.”

The aim of the proposals is to offer companies and their agents a single on-line filing service for HMRC and Companies House, so reducing the administrative burden on companies which have to file accounts.

At the heart of the proposals is the alignment of filing dates at both HMRC and Companies House. This will mean shorter filing times but will not affect the date at which a company pays tax.

The consultation seeks views on the benefits of a single on-line filing service, the alignment of filing dates and the timing of changes. Respondents are also asked to give their views on other areas where HMRC and Companies House could work together to deliver benefits to companies

NOTES FOR EDITORS

• Companies House is an executive agency of the DTI, with responsibility for the incorporation and dissolution of companies; for the registration of information supplied by them under the Companies Act and related legislation, and for making this information available to the public.
• The consultation period will end on 3 March 2006.

Press queries: Paul Reynolds, Companies House, Crown Way, Cardiff CF14 3UZ. Tel: 029 20380526