Online Filing

 

An annual return must be completed online using https://core.cro.ie or by using a secretarial software package. You have 56 days from your Annual Return Date to file your return online, including uploading the signature page, financial statements and payment online. The associated fee for filing an annual return is €20.
Please see our video guide on efiling an annual return (B1 Form): https://youtu.be/qeICyPGvF3o

Annual Return Requirements

CORE Portal FAQs

Annual Return FAQs

Annual Return Requirements

When it is Due?

An annual return is due within 56 days after the company Annual Return Date.

More information on this can be found here.

There are penalties for filing late with CRO. The onus is on the company to file on time, and you should take appropriate measures to ensure this.

 

Before You Start

  • You must get your accounts approved by your company directors before you file them. For guidance on the financial statements, please read here
  • You will need a username and password for Core – you can register for one here if you do not have one.
  • A credit/debit card or a topped-up customer account can be used to pay the filing fee.

 

Filing Your Annual Return

  • Your Annual Return must be filed online at https://core.cro.ie.
  • An annual return can also be filed online using a secretarial software package.
  • You have 56 days from your Annual Return Date to file your return online (including the upload of the signature page, financial statements and payment.)
  • Annual returns will be automatically rejected where the signature page or overall certificate is not signed or if it has only one signature.

 

CORE Portal

How do I Register for CORE Portal?

You can register for an account here: CORE (cro.ie)

  • You will receive an email to your email address to confirm the account.  This email contains a verification link. Once you receive the email, please click on the link and you will receive a popup indicating that your user account has been verified.
  • Click the log-in button in the pop-up display to log in.
  • Enter the log-in name and password that you used to create the account initially and click the log-in button.
  • Once successfully logged in, your CORE dashboard will be displayed.

 

What are the password requirements for CORE Portal?

Your password must be between 8 and 16 characters, and contain at least one capital letter and one number.

 

I cannot remember my password, how can I reset it?

From the Sign In screen, select the Forgot Password? Link and enter your Login Name. An email will be immediately sent containing a link which will allow you to enter a new password.

If you cannot remember your login name, select Forgot Login Name? from this screen. Enter your email address and we will send you an email with the list of users registered with that address.

 

I have applied for a password reset email but have not received one?

Please check that you have:

  • Entered a valid email address during registration.
  • Completed all steps of the registration process.
  • Checked any spam/junk mail boxes to see if the email has been filtered.
  • Add the email address (noreply@cro.ie) to any spam/junk mail filters list of approved senders, if necessary.

Once you have checked the list above you can request a reset password email by selecting ‘Forgot Password?’ on the Sign In screen.

Annual Return FAQs

My financial statements file is too large and won’t upload to CORE. What can I do?

PDF files should not be more than 5 mb. If your file is too large perhaps consider removing pictures/images from the financial statements. Copy the required text to a new Word processing document. There are other alternatives if using other Word Processors like CUTEFTP. Click File, Save As PDF then Click the Radio Button “Minimise Size” and “Compress Pictures. Compress Pictures will offer options - the lower the resolution you choose, the smaller the size of the document. Click Ok and Save the Document as PDF.  

Reducing size of pdf accounts.pdf

Why can I not see all my submissions in my CORE Workspace?
We have made some changes to make CORE more efficient, one of these changes is to limit the number of drafts in a user's workspace to the last 100 days. However, nothing is deleted or lost. If a user wants to recover a submission before that date then they just need to enter the company number or submission number in the search bar just above the workspace drafts. This will recover anything beyond the most recent 100 days.

Who Can File my Company Accounts?

You can file your accounts yourself. However, many companies will choose to use a professional such as an accountant to act on their behalf.

Form B77 should be used where you wish to appoint a firm as your company’s electronic filing agent (EFA). If this is a new EFA, please ensure you file this in plenty of time before your annual return due date.

You should note that even if you use someone to file for you, it is the responsibility of the directors to make sure the accounts are filed - and filed on time.

Can my Electronic Filing Agent (EFA) certify the financial statements of my company?

An EFA can sign a B1 (annual return) form on behalf of a company once she/he has been authorised by the company to do so on a B77 form. However, the 2014 Companies Act requires that the financial statements must be certified by a Director and Secretary of the company (original signatures). 

Therefore, where the B1 form is being signed by an EFA, the financial statements must be certified separately by a Director and Secretary using a Financial Statement Certification sheet which must be attached to the B1 online when filing the annual return on CORE.

CERTIFICATE for EFAs filing Financial Statements.pdf

Will my Signature page be physically sent back if my annual return is non-compliant?
No. Where documents are non-compliant they will not be physically sent back to the Presenter. An email will issue to the Presenter informing them that their document is sent back and that they must resubmit their B1, re-upload their financial statements, sign and upload a new signature page and submit it to the CRO within 14 days.

Companies and Presenters should ensure that they provide the correct email addresses to ensure they are alerted when their documents are sent back as they will not receive a letter or documents by post.

How do I avoid a filing penalty?

Returns which are filed late with the CRO incur a substantial late filing fee. A company will also lose eligibility for Audit Exemption for the following two years if the annual return is filed late.

If a company requires extra time to file its return, an application may be made to the District Court or High Court by the company.

Allow enough time to make sure your annual return is filed within the deadline. If you are a director of the company, you are personally responsible for delivering your accounts before the time allowed runs out. Delivery means actual receipt at CRO in the correct format. A penalty is automatically imposed if it is submitted late. Allowances cannot be made if the presenter experiences technical issues on their side which prevents the submission being filed on time.

Where can I get further information? 
Further Information is available as follows.

Filing on CORE: https://core.cro.ie

Filing through a software package website: Please contact your software provider

eB1 Help Mailbox: eb1@enterprise.gov.ie  

ROS (Revenue Online Service) https://www.ros.ie