Before you can file for an accounting period, Tax Optimiser asks you to pay a submission fee for that period. One payment covers both the CT600 to HMRC and the accounts to Companies House. If you paid against the wrong period — for example the later year, when you meant to file the earlier one first — you can move the payment to another period of the same company yourself, as long as nothing has been submitted for the period you paid for. You don’t need to ask for a refund and pay again.
When you can move a payment
You can move a payment when all of these are true:
- It was paid by card. A period marked as free by our support team can’t be moved, and neither can a payment that has been refunded.
- Nothing has been submitted for that period. Once a CT600 has gone to HMRC, or the accounts to Companies House, the payment has been used. Opening the submission screen doesn’t count; only actually sending does.
- The new period belongs to the same company and hasn’t already been paid for.
- A payment made at the dormant rate goes to a dormant period. Dormant periods have a lower fee, so a dormant-rate payment can only be moved to another dormant period. A standard payment can be moved to any period.
Heads up — this is for companies that pay for their own submissions. If your accountant files for you, submissions are paid from your accountant’s credits and there is nothing to move here.
Find the payment
If the period you want isn’t in Tax Optimiser yet, create it first. Then open Settings → Billing. The Submission payments table lists every period you have paid for. A payment that can be moved has a Move button at the end of its row.
If there is no Move button, the payment can’t be moved: something has already been submitted for that period, it was a free period, it was refunded, or the company has only one period.
Move it to the right period
Click Move. The next screen shows the payment and lists the periods it can go to. Periods that are already paid for aren’t listed, and for a dormant-rate payment only dormant periods are. Choose the period you want to file and click Move payment.
You go back to Billing with the confirmation Payment moved. You can now submit for the new period. The payment now shows against the new period, with a note saying which period it was moved from.
What happens next
- The new period is ready to file. Opening Corp Tax Submission or the Companies House submission for it goes straight into the wizard, without the payment screen.
- The original period needs paying for again when you come to file it. Its submission screen asks for the fee as usual.
- Your invoice doesn’t change. The Stripe invoice still shows the period you first paid for. The Billing page records the move, so you can match the two up.
Frequently asked questions
I have already submitted the CT600 for the period I paid for. Can I still move the payment?
No. Once a return or accounts have been sent for a period, its payment has been used. If you think you were charged by mistake, contact support.
Can I move a payment to a different company?
No. A payment can only move between accounting periods of the company that paid it.
Why can’t I see the period I want in the list?
Either it has already been paid for, or the payment was made at the dormant rate and that period isn’t dormant. If the period doesn’t exist yet, create it first and then come back to Billing.
Will I get a new invoice?
No. The original invoice still applies. It names the period you first paid for, and the Billing page shows where the payment was moved.
Can I move the payment back?
Yes, as long as nothing has been submitted for the period it is on now. Use Move again from the Billing page.