Accounts production software has to turn a trial balance into Companies Act accounts in the statutory formats, under FRS 102 (including Section 1A) or FRS 105, tag them fully in iXBRL using a taxonomy version HMRC and Companies House accept, and file them. From 1 April 2028 every company must file its accounts at Companies House through commercial software, so a practice should compare packages on framework coverage, tagging quality and the range of accounts types they can file, not just on layout and price.

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What must the software produce?

For a small company preparing Companies Act individual accounts, Schedule 1 to the Small Companies and Groups (Accounts and Directors’ Report) Regulations 2008 (SI 2008/409) requires the balance sheet and profit and loss account to show the items in one of the formats in Section B of Part 1. A company that qualifies as a micro entity need only show the items in the Section C formats. Paragraph 1B allows the directors to adapt the Section B formats provided the information given is at least equivalent, and paragraphs 2 and 2A require the same format to be used in later years unless, in the directors’ opinion, there are special reasons for a change.

The software therefore needs reliable templates for at least:

  • Micro entity accounts under FRS 105, for companies within the section 384A limits: turnover not more than £1 million, balance sheet total not more than £500,000 and not more than 10 employees, meeting two or more conditions.
  • Small company accounts under FRS 102 Section 1A, for companies within the section 382 limits: turnover not more than £15 million, balance sheet total not more than £7.5 million and not more than 50 employees.
  • Full FRS 102 accounts for medium sized companies and for small companies that choose full FRS 102.
  • LLP, charity and group accounts if the firm has those clients.

Standards change, and the software has to keep up. The FRC’s Periodic Review 2024 amendments to FRS 102 have a principal effective date of 1 January 2026, and further FRC amendments to FRS 102 and FRS 105 on adapted formats, issued on 18 February 2026, are effective from 1 January 2027. Ask each supplier how and when its templates and disclosure checklists were updated for these. Our page on the 2026 FRS 102 amendments summarises the changes, and our comparison of FRS 105 and Section 1A explains the choice between the two small company routes.

How does iXBRL tagging work in accounts software?

iXBRL is a human readable document with machine readable tags embedded in it. HMRC’s XBRL guide says the FRC accounts taxonomy must be used to tag accounts prepared under IFRS, FRS 101, FRS 102, FRS 102 Section 1A and FRS 105, and charity accounts prepared under the FRS 102 SORP. The FRC develops and maintains the UK digital reporting taxonomies on behalf of a cross government group of departments and regulators.

Taxonomy versions matter. HMRC’s list of accepted taxonomies sets out which version may be used for which accounting periods; for example, it shows the FRC 2024 taxonomy for periods ending up to 31 March 2027, with an end date still to be advised for the 2025 version. Software that lags behind can produce accounts that fail validation. HMRC’s guide also warns that users of accounts production or conversion software are likely to have to do some manual tagging to expand on the automatic tagging. Good software makes that visible, so the reviewer can see what is tagged and with which tag. Our page on iXBRL tagging for company tax returns sets out HMRC’s tagging requirements.

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What is changing at Companies House?

Companies House guidance says that from 1 April 2028 all companies must file their accounts using commercial software, whether they file themselves or through an accountant. Its web and paper services will close for accounts filings with no transition period, and any accounts due after that date, including revised accounts, must be filed through software. Web filing will remain for other filings such as confirmation statements. Companies House warns that not all software supports the iXBRL tagging needed to file digital accounts.

On 23 October 2026 the government announced that it would pause the requirement for small companies and micro entities to file their profit and loss account with Companies House from April 2028. In practical terms, companies can continue to file abridged accounts and smaller companies keep the option to leave out, or fillet, the profit and loss account from the accounts filed at Companies House. Software only filing is going ahead as planned, as are a strengthened eligibility statement for companies claiming audit exemption, a requirement to file the component parts of the accounts and reports together, and a limit on how many times a company can shorten its accounting reference period. Our page on software only accounts filing covers the legal background.

Which filings must the software support?

Companies House says different software products can file different types of accounts and provides a tool to find software for the type being filed. Its guidance says filing through software requires the company authentication code, a Companies House presenter account with a presenter ID and code, and a credit account for documents that carry a fee. Package accounts, meaning submissions made up of more than one component such as a package containing more than one set of accounts, can still be filed through the separate package accounts service after 1 April 2028, but the software must save them in ZIP format.

List every accounts type the firm filed last year: micro entity, small full and filleted, dormant, medium, LLP, group, charitable company, audit exempt subsidiary and amended accounts. Then confirm each shortlisted product can file each one directly. A product that produces excellent PDF accounts but cannot file a dormant LLP leaves the firm needing a second route after April 2028.

How should it connect to the firm’s other software?

The same accounts are filed at Companies House and submitted to HMRC with the Company Tax Return. HMRC’s guidance says the CT return must include the accounts and computations in iXBRL, so the accounts package should pass tagged accounts directly into the firm’s CT600 software or be part of the same suite. At the other end, it should import trial balances from the bookkeeping packages the firm’s clients use, with mapping that is kept from year to year. Our companion pages on tax return software and client bookkeeping software cover those links.

What should a practice compare between packages?

Area What to check
Frameworks FRS 105, FRS 102 Section 1A, full FRS 102, LLP and charity templates, and how quickly standards changes are released.
Disclosures Built in disclosure checklists and notes that switch on from the data, such as directors’ advances and average employee numbers.
Tagging Which FRC taxonomy versions are supported, how tags can be reviewed, and validation before filing.
Filing Direct filing to Companies House for every accounts type the firm uses, plus amended and package accounts.
Integration Trial balance import, links to CT600 software and practice management workflow.
Review Version control, reviewer sign off and client approval of the final accounts.

Illustration only. A firm prepares 180 sets of company accounts a year: 110 micro entity, 55 small Section 1A, 10 dormant and 5 LLP. Its current package files the micro and small accounts to Companies House, but the firm files its dormant company accounts through the Companies House web service and has never tested the package on LLP accounts. Those 15 filings need a confirmed software route before 1 April 2028, so the firm puts filing coverage at the top of its comparison and tests each shortlisted package by filing a sample of each type in the supplier’s test environment where one is available.

What mistakes do practices make?

  • Assuming every accounts type can be filed through software because the main types can.
  • Relying on automatic tagging without reviewing it.
  • Using templates that have not been updated for FRS 102 changes effective from 1 January 2026.
  • Planning around the earlier announcement that small and micro companies would have to file a profit and loss account, which has now been paused.
  • Leaving the decision until late 2027, when every firm will be changing at once.

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Sources

Reviewed by Christine Anderson, Broker, Solar Protect. Last reviewed 24 October 2026. Part of Accountapedia, the Solar Protect guide to UK tax and accounting. This page is general information, not personalised advice.