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Guidance

Newsletter 3 — March 2026

Published 26 March 2026

© Crown copyright 2026

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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/community-and-amateur-sports-club-newsletter-3-march-2026/newsletter-3-march-2026

Closure of the service to file company accounts and tax return

The online filing service used to file company accounts and tax returns closes on 31 March 2026. From 1 April 2026 organisations will need to use commercial software to file annual accounts and Company Tax Returns with HMRC.

Why the service is closing

The service to support small, unrepresented organisations with simple tax affairs to file online does not meet modern digital standards, or recent changes to UK law under the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023. Since online filing for Corporation Tax was introduced in 2011, the market has matured and grown. Commercial products can offer much more than the current service, such as improved validation, tax support and reminders.

What this means for Community Amateur Sports Clubs (CASCs)

Many CASCs are exempt from paying Corporation Tax, but they are required to complete and submit a Company Tax return in two specific circumstances:

  • if they have income that does not qualify for tax relief
  • if HMRC asks them to submit a return, even if they have no tax to pay

If you are required to submit a Company Tax return from 1 April 2026, you can no longer use the online filing service provided by HMRC and must use commercial software.

HMRC publishes a list of commercial software suppliers that can produce one or more elements of a Company Tax return. HMRC accepts returns filed using any of the suppliers listed.

A paper Company Tax return may only be submitted where a customer has a reasonable excuse or chooses to file in Welsh. In all other cases, organisations must file online.

You can find further information about the closure of the service and what to do now in our guidance on filing company accounts and tax returns if you previously used the HMRC online service.

Charity and Community and amateur sports club (CASC) Compliance — changes to charity and CASC tax relief rules

From April 2026, the government introduced a change to the rules on tainted donations. This change affects all UK charities, Community Amateur Sports Clubs (CASCs), donors and the agents and intermediaries who support them. The change is designed to simplify existing rules and reduce the risk of charitable tax reliefs being misused.

Changes to the tainted donations rules

A donor should not receive any financial benefit from making a donation to a charity or CASC. From April 2026, the tainted donations rules have moved from a test based on the donor’s motivation to a test based on the outcome, focussing on whether the donor receives any financial benefit, directly or indirectly, from making a donation to a charity or CASC. As part of this change, the test of ‘financial advantage’ has changed to ‘financial assistance’, lowering the threshold for determining whether a donation is tainted.

What charities and CASCs should do

Following this change, charities and CASCs should:

  • review the updated guidance on Tainted Donations, published on 9 April 2026
  • review donation structures to make sure they meet the new rules

Further information

Read more information on:

Updated guidance can be found in:

Enhancements to the Claim Gift Aid online service

We are currently undertaking work to improve the process for charities and CASCs to claim Gift Aid and tax back on other income. The improvements break down complex tasks into single-purpose screens with clear, structured content that provides a simplified claim process. We envisage this work to be completed over the next couple of months, and we will communicate more once the work has been completed.

Community Amateur Sports Clubs (CASCs) registrations

Over 8,000 sports clubs are now registered as Community Amateur Sports Clubs (CASCs).

This reflects the continued participation of local sports clubs across the UK and the role of volunteers in supporting community sport.

HMRC will continue to work with clubs and communities by administering the CASC scheme and the associated tax reliefs that support grassroots sport.

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