Every Irish company must file Form B1 at least once each year, whether it trades or not. Forti tracks your Annual Return Date, prepares the form, coordinates the financial statements and completes the CORE submission. If the return is already late or has been sent back, we confirm the fastest compliant route from the current position.
The ARD is the date to which the return is made up. The 56-day filing window follows from that date. Financial statements add a separate earlier deadline.
| Stage | Deadline | What must be filed |
|---|---|---|
| First Annual Return | ARD is six months after incorporation | Form B1 only — no financial statements are attached to the first return |
| Second Annual Return | Made up no later than 18 months after incorporation | Form B1 plus the first financial statements, filed within the relevant deadline |
| Later Annual Returns | At least once in every calendar year | Form B1 and the financial statements required for the period |
| General filing period | Within 56 days of the return's effective date | Form, financial statements, signature page or digital signatures, and payment — all complete |
| Accounts deadline | Earlier statutory date applies | Where accounts are attached, the deadline is the earlier of ARD plus 56 days or financial year-end plus nine months and 56 days |
The full B1 process — from form preparation through to CORE submission and CRO response monitoring.
A return is not safely filed simply because it was uploaded. The CRO can send it back or reject it where the form, accounts, signatures or payment do not meet the requirements.
Late filing consequences are financial, reputational and compliance-related. The 2025 audit-exemption change did not remove the other penalties.
| Consequence | Current rule | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| Late filing fee | €100 from day one, then €3/day | Maximum €1,200 per return, on top of the standard €20 filing fee |
| Public filing record | The late return remains in CRO history | Lenders, investors and other reviewers can see the filing record |
| Audit exemption | More than one late filing within five years from 16 July 2025 | The company may need audited accounts for the following two years, typically costing €3,000–€8,000 |
| Group position | Small-group audit exemption has separate conditions | Do not assume the ordinary standalone two-strike analysis settles the group position |
| Enforcement | Persistent non-filing | Can lead to prosecution or involuntary strike-off. CRO notices should not be ignored |
Form B1B73 can move the current ARD to a later date — but only while the return is still on time and the statutory conditions are met. It does not rescue an already late return.
Where the filing period has already expired, a company can apply to the District Court for an order extending the time to file. This is a formal legal process — not a discretionary CRO waiver.
Five stages — from the initial deadline check through to next-year planning.
Forti's Company Secretarial service includes Annual Return and accounts filing together with the wider secretarial work. Late, rejected or historical returns are quoted separately.
All fees exclude VAT at 23%. Financial-statement preparation, legal work and overdue filing support are confirmed in the written scope before work begins.
The Annual Return is straightforward when the accounts, signatures and deadline are controlled together. Forti checks the filing position early and completes the CORE submission before avoidable penalties begin.
Check my Annual Return Date
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