Overseas entity update statement — the annual ROE filing, handled by a regulated UK agent

When is the overseas entity update statement due?

The update period is 12 months from the date the entity first registered on the Register of Overseas Entities — or, after the first year, 12 months from the date of its last update statement. The statement must be filed within 14 days of the end of the update period.

Worked example: an entity registered on 5 May 2024 has an update period ending 4 May 2025, and must file its statement by 18 May 2025. Its next period then runs to 4 May 2026, and so on each year.

An entity may file early — useful when a property transaction is coming and the information needs to be demonstrably current — and the next 12-month period then runs from the new statement date.

What happens if the update statement is late?

Two things, both serious. First, the entity's Overseas Entity ID (OEID) is not valid while the statement is overdue: HM Land Registry restrictions mean the entity cannot buy, sell, transfer, lease or charge UK property or land until it has filed. Property transactions fail at exactly the moment they matter.

Second, failing to file is a criminal offence committed by the entity and every officer in default, carrying fines that accrue daily while the default continues. Filing late does not erase the breach, but it restores the OEID and stops the position getting worse — so a missed deadline is a reason to act immediately, not to wait.

Why does the update need a UK verification agent?

Where anything about the entity's registrable beneficial owners or managing officers has changed, the new information must be verified by a UK agent supervised under the Money Laundering Regulations 2017 before it can be filed — and the verification is only valid if carried out no more than three months before the statement date.

TaxStats Ltd is an ACCA-regulated accountancy practice supervised under MLR 2017 and a Companies House Authorised Corporate Service Provider (ACSP AP006589). We carry out the verification checks remotely, wherever in the world the beneficial owners are, and confirm them to Companies House under our agent assurance code.

Trusts and protected-status owners: the paper route

Not every entity can use the Companies House online service. Entities with trusts in their ownership structure, and entities whose beneficial owners hold protected (suppressed) status, must file the update statement on paper at the higher Companies House fee. These filings need more care, not less — we review them individually and put each one on the correct route from the start.

What does the update statement cost?

The Companies House fee is £134 for an online update statement and £268 for the paper route. Those fees are set by Companies House and we pass them on at cost as a disbursement. Our professional fee depends on the entity's circumstances — how many beneficial owners, whether anything changed, whether a trust or protected status is involved — so we quote per entity: standard cases get an indicative quote immediately from the free check, itemised with the Companies House fee shown separately.

Never miss the deadline again

The update statement is annual and the window is narrow — 14 days — which is why entities miss it. Once we act for an entity we track its update period year after year, including the three-month re-verification window for any changes, and prepare the statement in good time. One engagement, and the recurring deadline stops being your problem.