Business & Compliance Fit Check See Where Your Business Stands
Answer a few short questions and get an honest read on your compliance position, whether you are a limited company, a sole trader, a partnership, a construction business or a charity.
It takes about two minutes, it is free, and it gives you a clear next step rather than a sales pitch.
All results from these tools are estimates based on current UK rates and thresholds. Tax rules and rates change, and individual circumstances vary. Please confirm any figure with a qualified adviser at WPC Accountants before relying on it.
Which best describes you?
What the fit check does
Most businesses do not fail their compliance obligations deliberately. They fail them because nobody was quite sure whose job it was, or because a deadline moved, or because the business grew past a threshold that nobody was watching. This check asks the questions an accountant would ask in a first meeting, and gives you back a priority rating: low, medium or high. It tells you how much attention your position needs and where to start. It is deliberately short, a triage tool rather than an audit. If you want the thorough version, our Client Needs Assessment goes into far more detail across eleven service areas.
How it works
- 1
Tell us which type of business you are
Five options: corporate or business, sole trader and self-employed, partnership and joint venture, CIS, or charity. The questions that follow change depending on which you pick.
- 2
Answer four or five short questions
All yes, no or multiple choice. No figures, no documents, nothing to look up.
- 3
Leave your details and see your result
Name, email and phone. You get your priority rating and a plain explanation of what it means, and a member of the team follows up if you would like them to.
Which of the five client types are you?
Pick the one that fits best. If you are more than one, for example a limited company working in construction, pick the structure first and mention the rest at the end.
Corporate and business
For limited companies and trading businesses. This branch splits further depending on whether the business holds a sponsor licence, because a licence brings a whole second set of duties.
Sole traders and the self-employed
For freelancers, contractors, landlords and drivers. Our largest client group, and the questions are the ones that actually change how long a tax return takes.
Partnerships and joint ventures
For two or more people sharing profits, whether as a general partnership or an LLP.
Construction and CIS
For contractors and subcontractors working under the Construction Industry Scheme.
Charities and non-profits
For registered charities, CIOs and organisations working towards registration.
What your result means
Your answers produce one of three results. The result is a priority rating, not a score you can pass or fail, and it is never a price.
| Result | What it means |
|---|---|
| Low priority: your setup looks well covered | The basics are in place and nothing you have told us points to an urgent problem. Rules change every April though, so a short review once a year is normally enough to keep it that way. |
| Medium priority: a few things worth tightening up | Most of your position is in order, but there are one or two areas that would benefit from attention before they become deadlines. Nothing here is urgent. |
| High priority: this needs a closer look, soon | There are areas that need attention now rather than later. That is a common position to be in and it is fixable, but the sooner we look at it the more options you have. |
If you indicate you are closing the business, we skip the rest of the questions. Closing a company involves specific legal and tax steps, including final accounts, deregistering with HMRC, distributing what is left and formally striking off or liquidating, which is not something a form can assess. Please get in touch and we will walk you through it.
Key UK compliance deadlines
Whatever your result, these are the dates that matter. Most compliance problems start with one of these being missed.
| Who it applies to | What is due | When |
|---|---|---|
| Limited companies | Confirmation statement to Companies House | At least once every 12 months |
| Limited companies | Annual accounts to Companies House | 9 months after the year end. First accounts are due 21 months after incorporation. |
| Limited companies | Corporation Tax payment | 9 months and 1 day after the year end |
| Limited companies | Corporation Tax return (CT600) | 12 months after the year end |
| Sole traders and partners | Self Assessment tax return, filed online | 31 January |
| Sole traders and partners | Balancing payment and first payment on account | 31 January |
| Sole traders and partners | Second payment on account | 31 July |
| Sole traders and landlords over £50,000 | Making Tax Digital for Income Tax: quarterly updates and digital records | Live since 6 April 2026. The threshold falls to £30,000 in April 2027 and £20,000 in April 2028. |
| Partnerships | Partnership tax return, plus each partner's own return | 31 January online |
| VAT registered businesses | VAT return and payment | One month and 7 days after the end of each VAT period |
| Businesses approaching £90,000 turnover | VAT registration | Within 30 days of the end of the month you went over |
| Employers | Full Payment Submission to HMRC | On or before each payday |
| Employers | P60 to every employee | 31 May |
| Employers | P11D and P11D(b) for benefits | 6 July |
| Contractors in construction | Monthly CIS return | 19th of each month |
| Charities in England and Wales | Annual return, accounts and trustees' report | Within 10 months of the financial year end |
What it costs to miss a deadline
Penalties are automatic. They do not wait for anyone to notice, and they do not care why the deadline was missed. Separate penalties apply for a late Corporation Tax return, a late Self Assessment return, late VAT returns and late CIS returns, and interest runs on top of anything paid late.
| Accounts filed late at Companies House | Penalty for a private company |
|---|---|
| Up to 1 month late | £150 |
| More than 1 month and up to 3 months | £375 |
| More than 3 months and up to 6 months | £750 |
| More than 6 months | £1,500 |
| Late two financial years running | The penalty is doubled |
Source: Companies House late filing penalties on GOV.UK
The pattern we see most often is not one large failure. It is a small deadline missed, then a penalty, then a letter that goes unopened, then another deadline. It is far cheaper to deal with at the first step than at the fourth.
What the fit check is not
- It is not a quote. It gives an indicative priority only. A member of the team will follow up with proper pricing once we have looked at your answers. Our pricing starts from £99, but the final fee depends on your circumstances and the volume and complexity of your transactions.
- It is not an audit or a formal review. Five questions cannot tell you everything. They can tell you whether it is worth a conversation.
- It is not immigration advice. The sponsor licence questions look at whether your accounting and payroll can support your duties. For the duties themselves, our group company Work Permit Cloud advises on sponsorship duties and Home Office compliance visits.
- It is not a substitute for the detailed version. If you want the thorough picture, use our Client Needs Assessment instead.
This gives an indicative priority only, not a fee. Results are based on the answers you give and on current UK rules, which change. Please confirm anything you plan to act on with a qualified adviser at WPC Accountants.
Frequently asked questions
- In practice it means keeping the records the law expects, filing the right returns on time, and paying what is owed by the date it is due. For a limited company that is Companies House and HMRC. For a sole trader it is mainly HMRC. For a charity it is the Charity Commission as well. Compliance is rarely complicated. It is usually just a set of dates that somebody has to own.
- Annual accounts go to Companies House within 9 months of the year end, though first accounts are due 21 months after incorporation. Corporation Tax is payable 9 months and 1 day after the year end, and the Corporation Tax return is due 12 months after it. A confirmation statement is due at least once every 12 months. If you run payroll, a Full Payment Submission goes to HMRC on or before each payday.
- You must register once your VAT taxable turnover goes over £90,000 in any rolling 12-month period, or if you expect to go over it in the next 30 days alone. Registration is due within 30 days of the end of the month in which you went over. Watching this only at your year end is how businesses end up registering late and owing VAT they never charged.
- If your combined income from self-employment and property was over £50,000 for the 2024 to 2025 tax year, you should already be using it, as that group joined on 6 April 2026. The threshold falls to £30,000 from April 2027 and £20,000 from April 2028. It means keeping digital records and sending HMRC quarterly updates rather than one return a year.
- Companies House issues an automatic penalty: £150 if you are up to a month late, £375 up to three months, £750 up to six months, and £1,500 beyond that. If you file late two financial years running, the penalty doubles. Separate penalties apply to a late Corporation Tax return, and interest runs on any tax paid late.
- Registering with HMRC for Self Assessment and getting a UTR, keeping records of your income and expenses, filing a tax return by 31 January each year, and paying what you owe by the same date. If you make payments on account, a second payment falls due on 31 July. If your income is over the Making Tax Digital threshold you will also need digital records and quarterly updates.
- You have to keep specified records for every sponsored worker, report certain changes to the Home Office within set time limits, and be able to produce the evidence if you are visited. A large part of that evidence is payroll and contractual: payslips, contracts and hours that match what the Certificate of Sponsorship says. We handle that side. Our group company Work Permit Cloud advises on the immigration duties themselves.
- No. The requirement to renew a sponsor licence every four years was removed on 6 April 2024. In most cases a licence now stays valid until it is surrendered or revoked. That has made it easier to hold a licence, but it has not reduced the duties that come with it.
- Register with HMRC as a contractor, verify each subcontractor before paying them, deduct the right rate, which is normally 20% for registered subcontractors and 30% for unregistered ones, give the subcontractor a payment and deduction statement, and file a monthly CIS return by the 19th. Subcontractors with gross payment status have nothing deducted.
- In England and Wales, generally once annual income goes over £5,000, though a charitable incorporated organisation must register whatever its income. Registered charities file an annual return with accounts and a trustees’ report within 10 months of the financial year end. Higher income levels bring a requirement for an independent examination or a full audit.
- No. It gives an indicative priority rating only. Pricing depends on your circumstances and on the volume and complexity of your transactions, so we would rather look at your position properly than put a number on a form. Our pricing starts from £99 and a member of the team will confirm a fee after reviewing your answers.
- About two minutes. You answer four or five questions, leave your name, email and phone number, and see your result straight away. If you would like us to, someone from the team will get in touch to talk it through. There is no obligation and we will not pass your details to anyone else.