What is an accounting reference date?

In practice, in the UK

The accounting reference date drives the whole filing calendar that follows it: the accounts have to be made up to that date, and both the accounts-filing deadline at Companies House and the tax deadlines that follow from the accounting period are calculated from it. A company can change its accounting reference date, shortening or lengthening a financial year to move it to a date that suits the business better — aligning group companies to the same year end, for instance — though lengthening it is more restricted than shortening it, and cannot usually be done too often. Changing the date does not just move a filing deadline: it can also split or extend the Corporation Tax accounting period in ways that need to be worked through separately from the Companies House change.

In Odoo

Odoo’s financial year settings need to match the company’s accounting reference date exactly, since every closing report, comparative figure and year-end routine in the system is built around that date. A change to the accounting reference date at Companies House has to be mirrored in Odoo’s own configuration, or the accounts the system produces will not line up with the period actually being reported on.

Common mistakes

• Changing the accounting reference date at Companies House without updating the corresponding settings in the accounting system.
• Assuming the date can always be moved freely in either direction, when lengthening a year is more restricted than shortening one.
• Forgetting that a changed accounting reference date can affect the Corporation Tax accounting period as well as the Companies House deadline.