If you are a director of your own limited company, your 2025/26 Self Assessment return has extra work for you. The employment pages (SA102) now include four new boxes, numbered 7.1 to 7.4, for directors of close companies.
Get them wrong and a £60 penalty can follow. Here is what each box needs and how to stay on the right side of the new rules.
What the four boxes ask for
A close company is broadly a company controlled by five or fewer people. That covers most owner-managed limited companies.
If you were a director of a close company during 2025/26, you must complete boxes 7.1 to 7.4 on the SA102 employment page for each directorship. That means a separate page for each close company you directed, even if you received no salary or dividends from it.
- Box 7.1: the name of the close company.
- Box 7.2: the company’s registration number (its Companies House number).
- Box 7.3: the dividends you received from that company during the year. Enter the figure even if it is zero.
- Box 7.4: the highest percentage of the company’s share capital you held during the year. Enter the figure even if it is zero.
Enter zero, not blank
This trips people up. Where the dividend or shareholding figure is nil, you must enter “0”. Do not leave the box blank. HMRC has confirmed that blank boxes cause filing errors.
Who must complete them
More people than you might expect.
Unpaid directors. If you are a director but took no salary and no dividends, you still complete the boxes, with zeros where the figures are nil.
Directors of dormant companies. The requirement applies because you are a director of a close company, not because the company traded.
Multiple directorships. Complete a separate SA102 page for each close company you directed in the year.
The one exception HMRC has confirmed: unpaid directors of registered charities and community interest companies (CICs) with no income do not need to complete the boxes.
Directors who do not file a return. The boxes only apply if you already complete a Self Assessment return, and you do not have to register for one just because you are a close company director.
The £60 penalty
HMRC can charge a £60 penalty if you do not provide the required close company information. This sits on top of the standard penalties for filing or paying late.
One point in your favour: HMRC treats the four boxes as a single composite requirement. That means only one £60 penalty per return at most, not one per box.
HMRC has also said it will take a “considered approach” to the new requirements, weighing the reasonable efforts you made based on the guidance available at the time. That is reassuring, but it is not a reason to leave the boxes blank.
The legal background
The requirement comes from the Income Tax (Additional Information to be included in Returns) Regulations 2025 (SI 2025/84). The regulations were made on 27 January 2025 and took effect on 6 April 2025, so they bite for the first time on 2025/26 returns.
With the online filing deadline of 31 January 2027 approaching, now is the time to gather the company name, registration number, dividend figures, and shareholding percentages for each directorship.
Frequently Asked Questions
Four new boxes on the 2025/26 Self Assessment employment pages. Directors of close companies must enter the company name (7.1), the company registration number (7.2), the dividends received in the year (7.3), and the highest shareholding percentage in the year (7.4).
Yes. Unpaid directors of close companies must still complete the boxes, entering “0” where the dividend or shareholding figure is nil. Only unpaid directors of registered charities and CICs with no income are excepted.
Blank boxes cause filing errors. Where the figure is nil, enter “0” rather than leaving the box empty.
No. HMRC treats the boxes as a single composite requirement, so only one £60 penalty per return can apply, on top of any standard late filing or late payment penalties.
Yes. You complete a separate SA102 employment page, with boxes 7.1 to 7.4, for each close company you were a director of during the tax year.
The online filing deadline is 31 January 2027. Paper returns are due by 31 October 2026.
Disclaimer:
This guide provides general information about the new SA102 boxes for close company directors as of October 2026. Tax rules and government announcements can change. Nothing in this article is tax advice. Always consult with a qualified tax professional about your specific circumstances. That’s what we’re here for. In accordance with our normal practice we give this reference in good faith and in confidence, without legal liability on the part of the author or the company. The author assumes no responsibility or liability for any errors or omissions in the content of this site
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