Workflows can be created to help make the confirmation statement process more efficient, these workflows can automate getting approval or make the filing automatically. 


There are 3 sections to this guide which are numbered below:

  1. Setting up or editing workflows
  2. Applying workflows to companies
  3. Scenarios in which automated actions would not work


 

1. Setting up or editing workflows

  

1.1 Under your Account tab there is an option to View workflows, this can be used to manage your confirmation statement automation settings.


The workflows created by following this guide can be applied individually to companies within your portfolio.





1.2 The 3 default settings are shown in the image below, selecting the blue arrow next to each allows you to view their functions.

  

Note: You will be able to select on a company by company basis which workflow, if any, applies to them.


 


File confirmation statement on MUTD (Made up to date) + 7:


This workflow files the confirmation statement automatically. The default is to file it 7 days after the made up to date (MUTD). This is 7 days before the latest date to file the document.



Generate approval & email it on MUTD:


This setting will create the pending approval and summary document. It will email it to a selected email address for the client on the made up to date. You can select whether the client electronically approves or emails confirmation to you, and whether their approval leads to an automatic submission. 



Generate approval document:


This setting will create the pending approval and summary document for you to download, it will appear as a pending approval on the company. This process does not make any filing to Companies House, you can submit manually once approved. 




1.3 It is possible to Add a new workflow or to edit the default settings which exist via the yellow pencil. 



The Add new workflow opens up the options shown below, the edit settings will allow the same options:


Initially, it shows the option to add a Name and Description, these are for your reference to identify this from other workflows. The workflow type is to confirm which filing process it relates to. 


Below this, the Automation option can be selected. This is to confirm whether your workflow is to generate an approval document, email it too, or to submit the filing. 



1.3a Generate approval document gives you the options shown below:


    Note: The 'Made up to date' is the last day of the confirmation period. The due date for the filing is 14 days after the made up to date.


The drop-down box allows you to confirm when the approval document and pending approval is created:


  • Made up to date - On a company's 'Next confirmation statement made up to date' expected by Companies House.
  • Before the made up to date - Before a company's 'Next confirmation statement made up to date' expected by Companies House, by the number of days specified below.
  • After the made up to date - After a company's 'Next confirmation statement made up to date' expected by Companies House, by the number of days specified below.


1.3b Generate approval document & email it options are:

 

The same options as detailed for generating the pending approval above show initially, there is then a second step to confirm the automation option as shown below.




1.3c File Confirmation statement allows you to select the following options: 


Automation day:

This is the point at which the confirmation statement filing is submitted to Companies House automatically. You can select from a drop-down of Made up to date or After the made up to date, which then allows you to confirm the number of days after the made up to date you wish for the filing to be sent. 


Include shareholder list:

An updated list of the shareholders will be reported on the confirmation statement if any updates to the shares have taken place during that period. Some may choose to include a list of shareholders on all submissions. The drop-down box allows you to select which is preferred.


Include statement of capital:

An updated statement of capital will also be reported on the confirmation statement if any updates to the shares have taken place during that period. You can select from the drop-down whether you wish for this to only appear when a shareholder list is also included or whether to always have it as part of the filing. 



2. Applying workflows to companies


The workflows created will need to be applied to the companies which they will be used on, for further details see below:


Existing companies in the portfolio:

The settings can be applied to existing companies individually. Without applying an automation workflow setting, the company will retain the original manual filing process. To add a workflow see How to apply Confirmation Statement Workflows to companies. 


New companies imported or formed:

Next to each workflow created, the yellow pencil includes a Set as default option. This will apply the workflow to all new companies imported or formed.


If you have selected to email approvals directly to clients and set the workflow as your default option, when importing or after forming a company you will be prompted to select the email address which it is sent to. This will appear at the end of the import process, or as a check alert on the company dashboard for newly formed companies. 




3. Scenarios in which automated actions would not work


It is important to note that there are a range of scenarios which could lead to the automation not being completed for a company. 


If the planned automation cannot be completed an email will be sent to notify you. 


The most common examples of these are below:


  • There is a confirmation statement submission currently pending on the company.
  • A confirmation statement has already been submitted on that day. 
  • The share class is unreconciled. The confirmation statement as standard will include a statement of capital and often a shareholder list too, therefore the shares should be reconciled before starting the process.
  • The company has previously informed Companies House that it is trading on a market.
  • The paid/unpaid amounts for the shares in the company are incomplete.
  • The share classes have missing prescribed particulars. 
  • A default option to send the approval via email is in place, but the sender or recipient email has not been set.


The company dashboard is likely to contain an alert for the above scenarios. However, should it not be clear why the automation has not worked, clicking the File Confirmation Statement button on the dashboard tab will provide further details.