What are the UK bookkeeping rules if records are kept abroad?

Records must show and explain the company's transactions, disclose its financial position with reasonable accuracy, and enable accounts to be prepared that comply with the Companies Act. This covers sales and purchase invoices, bank statements, payroll records and asset registers.

Where records are kept outside the UK, HMRC has the right to ask for information or documents to be sent to the UK, and can require them within a reasonable period, so records kept only on paper in another country can create delay and risk if HMRC ever asks.

Cloud accounting software, scanned receipts and digital bank feeds mean the records are effectively always accessible from the UK, satisfying both the Companies Act and HMRC's practical expectations without anything being physically shipped.

We recommend clients avoid keeping the only copy of records on a personal laptop or local server abroad; a shared cloud system with the accountant gives continuity if the director changes, travels, or is unreachable at a filing deadline.

Our fixed monthly packages for a UK limited company start at £89 plus VAT and run to £169 and £289 plus VAT as bookkeeping, VAT, payroll and reporting are added. One-off filings are sold at fixed prices, and the Companies House fees we pay for you are charged at cost with no VAT added. Overseas owners are quoted on exactly the same published prices as UK-resident clients.

Rates, thresholds and deadlines here reflect the 2026/27 UK position and current Companies House and HMRC guidance. Check GOV.UK, or ask us, before relying on them for your own company.