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Annual Return Date

An Annual Return Date (ARD) of a company is the latest date to which an annual return must be made up. The annual return must be filed with the CRO within 28 days of the date to which it is made up. Each company has an Annual Return Date allocated to it and it can be checked using the Company Search facility. A company can bring forward their Annual Return Date or depending on the circumstances, extend the ARD to a later date.

Extending the ARD to a later date

The ARD is set to a later date by filing Form B73. Form B73 must be filed electronically (no fee) and may be filed by a company not more than once in every five years. Form B73 should not be filed with the company's first annual return (due six months after incorporation). See below.

It is a statutory requirement that Form B73 be delivered to the CRO within 28 days from the company's existing ARD. As a matter of law, a Form B73 is ineffective and cannot be accepted by the CRO if it is filed more than 28 days after the company's existing ARD. If your company wishes to extend its current ARD, it may do so by: delivering an annual return to the CRO not later than 28 days after its current ARD, to which no financial statements need to be annexed, and nominating on Form B73 the new ARD, which date may be not later than six months after its first ARD.

Form B73 should not be filed with the company's first annual return.

  • A company's first annual return is made up to the date which is 6 months post-incorporation, no financial statements attached. (Section 349 Companies Act 2014).
  • Filing the B73 shortens the timescale within which financial statements have to be filed by the company
  • For example a company incorporated on 10 February 2017 is due to make its first annual return (without financial statements) up to 10 August 2017. On filing this return, its next annual return date becomes 10 August 2018. If the company files a B73 with its first return, however, it creates a new ARD, being the date nominated by it on the B73, and financial statements will have to be attached to its second return which can be made up to 10 February 2018 at the latest.