Alteration to the Annual Return Date (ARD) – Overview

A company is required to file an Annual Return every year to the CRO, within 56 days of the ARD. The company’s ARD is determined by its date of incorporation. The first Annual Return Date of a company is the date six months after the date of its incorporation. For the subsequent years, it shall be the anniversary of its first ARD. However, there could be circumstances where a company might require a change in the ARD. Examples of these situations include the following:

• A company may want to change its financial year end to 31 December to bring it in line with the calendar year and therefore will have to change the ARD, or
• A company that is a member of a group of companies might want to alter its ARD in order to align it with its holding company or other companies in the group.

Bringing Forward or Extending the ARD – How it Works?

• Where a company needs to change its ARD to a date earlier than the existing ARD, it can do so by filing the Annual Return Form B1 early and specify on the Form to change the ARD to the new date, up to which the Form B1 has been made. However, if the company wishes to retain the anniversary of its existing ARD, it should specify this on the form.
• Where a company needs to extend the ARD, it can do so by filing the Form B73. The ARD can be extended by up to six months from the existing ARD. A company is allowed to file an extension in ARD for not more than once in every five years. It is important to note that a Form B73 should not be filed with the first Annual Return of the company.

Certain rules need to be complied with while filing Form B73:

• The Form B73 must be completed online with the Annual Return (Form B1);
• The date mentioned in the Form B73 as the new ARD should not make the time period between the previous financial year and the new ARD to be more than nine months;
• The Form B73 should be filed with the CRO within 56 days of the company’s existing ARD;
• Subsequent to filing the extension in ARD, the company should check that its new ARD has been updated with the CRO.

How Can Fusion Formations help you?

In any circumstances necessitating the nomination of a new ARD, we can provide you with complete professional assistance throughout the process.

Changing the ARD can have different statutory implications and a non-compliance could result in penalties and loss of audit exemption. We ensure that your company files for nomination of a new Annual Return Date in accordance with the provisions of the law, ensuring compliance and your peace of mind. Our package for Nomination of a new Annual Return Date costs €100.00 only.

For any queries and information, please feel free to contact our team on +353 1 4013286 or complete our enquiry form and we will get in touch within 24 hours.