Miss a regulatory return deadline and the FCA adds £100 to your account — it was £250 until 1 April 2026, when the FCA cut it. It is applied automatically, it is not negotiable in practice, and it is entirely avoidable — which is what makes paying it so irritating.
What the charge is
Authorised firms submit regulatory returns through the FCA's RegData system on a schedule set for each firm. Submit one late and a £100 administrative fee is applied under SUP 16.3.14R — reduced from £250 on 1 April 2026. There is no grace period, no reminder letter first, and no distinction between a firm that submitted a day late and one that submitted three months late.
It is charged per late return, so a firm that misses two returns in the same year pays it twice.
Why small firms end up paying it
Almost never through indifference. In practice the causes are mundane and repetitive:
- Nobody registered on RegData. The firm is authorised, nothing appears to require attention, and the system that shows the deadline was never set up.
- The FCA's email went to the wrong address — a departed employee, an accountant's mailbox, or a spam folder.
- The accounting reference date changed. Change your year end at Companies House and your FCA reporting deadline moves with it. Very few people connect the two.
- It was assumed to be the accountant's job. Regulatory returns are not statutory accounts, and most accountants do not file them.
- Nothing to report. A firm that arranged no finance all year assumes there is nothing to file. The return is still required.
The pattern behind all of these is the same: the deadline is knowable a year in advance, and nobody wrote it down anywhere they would see it. That is a diary problem, not a compliance problem.
The bigger risk behind the £100
The fee itself is an annoyance. The real exposure is what sits behind it: a firm that stops reporting is a firm the FCA cannot supervise, and persistent failure to submit returns can lead to authorisation being cancelled. Losing your permission means losing the ability to offer finance to customers, which for most firms is worth considerably more than £100 a year.
How to make sure it never happens
- Register on RegData the week you are authorised. Not when the first deadline approaches.
- Use an address that outlives individuals — a role-based mailbox rather than a personal one, checked by someone.
- Put the date in the same calendar as your VAT and Companies House deadlines. A regulatory deadline kept somewhere separate is a deadline waiting to be missed.
- Re-check the date if you change your year end. This one catches out firms that have been compliant for years.
- File a nil return if there is nothing to report. It takes minutes and costs nothing.
Our guide to the CCR007 annual return covers what the return actually asks for, and ongoing obligations after authorisation sets out everything else that follows once you hold a permission.
Frequently asked questions
- Can the £100 late fee be appealed?
In practice it is applied automatically to late submissions and firms should not expect it to be waived because of an oversight. The reliable approach is to treat the deadline as fixed and diarise it a year ahead.
- Is the £100 charged per return or per year?
Per late return. A firm that misses more than one return in a year can be charged more than once.
- Do I have to file if my firm did no consumer credit business?
Yes. The obligation follows the permission, not the activity. A nil return still has to be submitted, and not filing it attracts the same charge.
- Does my accountant file regulatory returns?
Usually not. Regulatory returns are separate from statutory accounts and most accountants do not handle RegData submissions. It is worth confirming rather than assuming.
- What happens if I keep missing returns?
Beyond the repeated £100 charges, persistent failure to report is a breach of your reporting requirements and the FCA can cancel a firm's authorisation.
This guide is general information about FCA regulatory reporting, not regulated advice. Fee and deadline figures are for the 2026/27 FCA fee year as set out in FCA policy statement PS26/14, and we review them each July when the FCA publishes new rates. Your firm remains responsible for its own regulatory obligations. CreditLicence is a trading name of Regetus Ltd.