Company Accounts: Amending Regulations

New regulations came into force on 6 April 2015 to implement in the UK Chapters 1 to 9 of the EU Accounting Directive. The Directive provides an updated EU-wide accounting framework for statutory accounts. The new regulations apply to accounting periods starting on or after 1 January 2016, though early adoption is possible.

A significant change is to reduce the financial reporting burden for small companies. In particular:

The regulations adopt the maximum turnover and balance sheet limits for small companies allowed by the Accounting Directive, enabling a larger number of companies to access the lighter touch small companies regime. The maximum permissible turnover limit is £10.2 million (up from £6.5 million) and the maximum permissible balance sheet total is £5.1 million (up from £3.26 million). There is no change to the maximum number of employees (50). There are equivalent increases to the limits for small groups. The regulations reduce the number of compulsory disclosures small companies must...