Ireland · Guide
Irish company compliance has a reputation for being reasonable, and mostly it is: one annual return, one set of accounts, one tax return, all filed online. It also contains the nastiest small-print trap we have found in any jurisdiction we cover, and a first deadline that lands months before most founders expect anything.
Two facts organise everything below, both current as of August 2026. First, your first annual return is due just 6 months after incorporation, with no accounts attached, and non-resident founders miss it constantly because "annual" sounds like "in a year". Second, the famous Irish punishment for filing late, losing your audit exemption for two years, was reformed on 16 July 2025: a first late filing is now forgiven, and a lot of guidance still describes the old rule. Here is the current system, deadline by deadline.
This is general information, not legal advice. CRO fees, deadlines and penalty figures below are corroborated from official material as of August 2026 but should be confirmed against cro.ie and with a qualified company secretary or advisor before you rely on them.
Your first deadline comes at 6 months
The year-one trap, in one box. Every Irish company gets an Annual Return Date (ARD) exactly 6 months after incorporation. You must file a Form B1 within 56 days of that date, and this first return requires no financial statements: it is a snapshot of the company's details, filed online through CORE for a 20 euro fee. Miss it and the late fees start immediately, and under the old audit rule a single day late used to cost two years of mandatory audits. Incorporate in January, and your first CRO deadline arrives in July, when your accountant has not even opened a file yet.
Treat the first B1 as part of the formation project itself. If a provider handled your incorporation, confirm in writing who files it.
- After that first filing, the B1 becomes annual, due on your ARD and filed within the CRO's window.
- Two ARD subtleties: you can change your ARD (Form B73, usable once every five years), and the date is fixed at incorporation, not chosen later.
- From the second B1 onwards, financial statements travel with the return.
- Your financial year end must be no more than 9 months before your ARD, and an accounting period cannot exceed 18 months. This is why aligning the ARD with your year end (via B73) matters.
- Micro and small companies can file abridged accounts, meaning the public file at the CRO shows far less than the full statements. Under the thresholds as uplifted by SI 301/2024, a micro company sits under roughly 900,000 euro turnover, 450,000 euro balance sheet and 10 employees, and a small company under roughly 15 million euro turnover, 7.5 million euro balance sheet and 50 employees. Most founder companies qualify as micro for years.
- A dormant company still files a B1 every year. Dormancy changes what the accounts contain, not whether the return is due.
Audit is the separate question, and it is where Ireland hides its trap.
Audit exemption: the late filing trap, before and after 16 July 2025
Small and micro companies are normally exempt from audit, which is worth real money: an audit for even a tiny company runs to thousands of euro a year. Ireland's historical sting was the link between that exemption and the B1 deadline.
The old rule, in force up to 15 July 2025: file any B1 late, by even one day, and the company lost its audit exemption for the following two financial years. Two years of mandatory audits, commonly estimated at 2,000 to 5,000 euro each, as the price of one missed administrative deadline. This rule, unique in its severity among the jurisdictions we cover, is what made the Irish compliance calendar genuinely dangerous for remote founders.
The current rule, since 16 July 2025 (section 22 of the Companies (Corporate Governance, Enforcement and Regulatory Provisions) Act 2024, commenced on that date): a first late B1 is forgiven. The two-year audit consequence now applies only at the second late filing within a five-year window, late filings before 16 July 2025 are disregarded, and the regime applies to small, micro and dormant companies that are not part of a group. The monetary late fees below were not changed.
This is the number one freshness marker on this topic: any guide telling you flatly that "a late B1 means two years of audits" is describing the pre-July 2025 world. True, but only on your second miss in five years. Do not let the softer rule change your behaviour, though: strike one is still recorded, and the fees still run from day one.
Missed the deadline? Fees, the second strike, and the District Court route
What actually happens when a B1 goes in late, as of August 2026:
- An immediate late fee of 100 euro, plus 3 euro per day, capped at 1,200 euro per return. The meter starts the day after the 56-day window closes.
- Strike one against your audit exemption under the post-2025 rule above. A second late return within five years costs two audited years.
- Escalation if you keep ignoring it: the CRO can prosecute directors and, for persistent non-filing, begin involuntary strike-off, covered below.
There is also a lifeline that rarely gets mentioned: section 343(5) of the Companies Act 2014 allows a company to apply to the District Court for an extension of time to file. If the court grants it and you file within the extended period, the return is treated as on time, which preserves the audit exemption entirely. It involves real cost and lead time, and it must be set in motion before you simply file late, so it is a tool for "we discovered the miss in week one", not for month six.
The full compliance calendar: CRO and Revenue in one table
The reason Irish deadlines catch founders is that two agencies run two separate calendars that interleave. Here is year one for a company incorporated on 1 January 2026 with a 31 December year end, merging the CRO track with the Revenue track from the corporation tax guide:
| When | Obligation | Agency | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 January 2026 | Incorporation | CRO | Day zero |
| By around 1 June 2026 | Beneficial ownership filing (RBO), within 5 months of incorporation | RBO | Separate register, separate portal |
| 1 July 2026 (ARD #1) | First B1 due, no accounts; file within 56 days, so by about 26 August | CRO | The year-one trap |
| Late November 2026 | Preliminary tax, 31 days before year end, by the 23rd of the month | Revenue | First period with liability under 200,000 euro: exempt, pay with the CT1 |
| 31 December 2026 | Financial year end | ||
| 23 September 2027 | CT1 return and balance of tax, 23rd day of the 9th month after year end | Revenue | You pay before or shortly after you close, not a year later |
| ARD 2027 | B1 #2, now with financial statements (year end within 9 months of ARD) | CRO | Abridged accounts for micro/small |
| Every year after | B1 + accounts (CRO), preliminary tax + CT1 (Revenue) | Both | Two calendars, permanently |
Note what the fused view reveals: an Irish company's quiet first year contains at least three hard deadlines before its first birthday (RBO, first B1, and for profitable companies preliminary tax), none of which involves the annual accounts founders think of as "the compliance event". The accounts arrive in year two and join a machine already running.
Strike-off: what actually happens if you ignore it all
Persistent failure to file B1 returns leads to involuntary strike-off. The company is dissolved, its assets pass to the State, its limited liability ends, and the directors of a struck-off company can face disqualification or restriction proceedings. Reinstatement is possible but costly. For a non-resident founder the practical horror is quieter: banks and payment providers run status checks, and a company sliding toward strike-off fails KYC refreshes long before the dissolution lands.
If you are done with a company, close it properly through voluntary strike-off with the filings up to date; walking away accrues fees, strikes and personal exposure in your name on a public register.
- Day 0Incorporation at the CRO
- +5 monthsCRO side: beneficial ownership filing at the RBO, a separate register and a separate portal
- +6 monthsCRO side: first annual return (B1), no accounts attached, filed within 56 days of the ARD
- +11 monthsRevenue side: preliminary tax, 31 days before year end — exempt in a first period under €200,000
- +21 monthsRevenue side: CT1 return and the balance of tax, 9 months after year end
- Second ARDCRO side: B1 #2, now with financial statements attached
What you do not have to file
The Irish load in perspective, because founders comparing jurisdictions consistently over- or under-estimate it:
- No audit while you stay small and file on time: the exemption is the norm, not a privilege.
- Abridged public accounts for micro and small companies: your full P&L does not go on public display.
- No local filings for dormancy relief: but remember, dormant still files the B1.
| Yearly obligation | Ireland LTD | UK Ltd | Delaware LLC |
|---|---|---|---|
| Annual return / report | B1 within 56 days of ARD, 20 euro | Confirmation statement | None at all |
| Accounts filed | Yes, from year 2, abridged if small | Yes, public | Never |
| Audit risk | Exempt if small, lost on 2nd late B1 in 5 years | Exempt below thresholds | No audit concept |
| Tax return | CT1, month 9 | CT600, month 12 | Flat annual tax, no state return |
The Delaware compliance guide covers the right-hand column; the structural point is that Ireland sits in the middle, more paperwork than Delaware, comparable to the UK, with the audit-exemption strike rule as its unique local hazard.
Irish compliance reduces to a short list: RBO once, then every year one B1, one set of accounts, one CT1 and one preliminary tax payment, on two interleaved calendars. Everything on that list is cheap and routine when it happens on time, and expensive in cascades when it does not, with the 6-month first B1 as the trap that catches remote founders specifically.
If you would rather have the ARD tracked, the B1 signed and filed, the accounts prepared and both calendars watched in one accountable place, that is exactly the ongoing scope of the Ireland company package, alongside the formation itself and the running costs.
Frequently asked questions
What is a B1 annual return?
The Irish company's yearly filing to the CRO: a snapshot of registered office, officers, capital and members, filed online through CORE for 20 euro within 56 days of the company's Annual Return Date. From the second return onward, financial statements are attached.
When is the first annual return due?
Six months after incorporation, then within 56 days of that date. It requires no financial statements, and it is the most commonly missed Irish deadline because founders expect nothing before the first anniversary.
Do I file accounts with the first B1?
No. The first return is documents-free by design. Accounts join from the second B1, covering a financial year ending no more than 9 months before the ARD.
What is the penalty for a late annual return?
An immediate 100 euro plus 3 euro per day, capped at 1,200 euro per return, plus a strike toward losing the audit exemption, and ultimately prosecution or strike-off for persistent default.
Do I lose my audit exemption if I file late?
Not on the first miss anymore. Since 16 July 2025, a first late B1 in five years is forgiven; the two-year audit requirement now hits at the second late filing within five years. Before that date, one late filing was enough, which is why many guides still overstate the rule.
What is an ARD and can I change it?
The Annual Return Date, set at 6 months after incorporation and annually thereafter. You can move it with Form B73, once every five years, typically to align with your accounting year end.
Does a dormant company still file?
Yes. A dormant Irish company files a B1 every year, with dormant-company accounts from year two. Dormancy is not an exemption from the return.
What are the audit exemption thresholds?
Small companies (roughly under 15 million euro turnover, 7.5 million euro balance sheet, 50 employees, per the 2024 uplift) and micro companies (roughly 900,000 euro, 450,000 euro, 10 employees) are audit exempt, provided returns are filed on time under the two-strike rule.
What is the RBO filing?
The Register of Beneficial Ownership: every Irish company must file its beneficial owners within about 5 months of incorporation, on a separate portal from the CRO. Banks check it during onboarding, so an unfiled RBO blocks accounts in practice.
What happens if my company is struck off?
It is dissolved, assets pass to the State, limited liability ends and directors risk disqualification or restriction. Reinstatement is possible but expensive. If a company is no longer needed, close it properly rather than letting it lapse.
Can non-resident directors sign the B1?
Yes, the B1 is signed electronically by a director and the secretary, from anywhere. In practice the company secretary, often a professional one for non-resident boards, drives the filing; see the non-resident director guide.
Sources
- Companies Registration Office: annual return (Form B1) and annual return date
- Companies (Corporate Governance, Enforcement and Regulatory Provisions) Act 2024 (No. 44 of 2024), s.22: audit exemption reform
- Register of Beneficial Ownership (RBO): filing obligations for companies
- PwC Tax Summaries Ireland: corporate tax administration (CT1 and preliminary tax deadlines)
This is a YMYL topic. The audit exemption reform is verified against the Companies (Corporate Governance, Enforcement and Regulatory Provisions) Act 2024 and its July 2025 commencement as reported by the CRO and Irish law firms; B1 mechanics, fees and penalty figures are corroborated from CRO material and Irish formation practitioners, but cro.ie blocked automated verification this session, so every CRO figure must be re-checked manually against cro.ie before publication. Revenue-side deadlines follow PwC Tax Summaries as of August 2026. Confirm current rules with the CRO, Revenue or an Irish company secretary before relying on them.