CT writes: Last year we started a small consultancy and structured it as a limited liability partnership rather than a limited company. I know that limited companies can file abbreviated annual accounts. Is this possible with a limited liability partnership? If so, what information will need to be disclosed about the partners’ income?

Annual abbreviated accounts can be filed at Companies House by both limited companies and limited liability partnerships (LLPs), writes Chris Lane, a partner at Kingston Smith LLP.

There are two different levels of abbreviated accounts — small and medium. The same criteria are used to determine whether a company, or an LLP, qualifies to file small or medium abbreviated accounts.

To be able to file abbreviated small accounts, the business needs to meet two out of three of the following criteria: annual turnover of less than £6.5m, balance sheet total assets of less than £3.26m and fewer than 50 employees. The thresholds for medium businesses are higher at turnover of £25.9m, balance sheet total assets of £12.9m and 250 employees.

Remember that the balance sheet total is not the total of net assets of the business but of the gross assets.

Some businesses that fall within these criteria are still prohibited from filing abbreviated accounts because they are a public company, or a particular regulated business, or a member of an ineligible group.

The abbreviated accounts for a small LLP business would not need to include the profit-and-loss account, a members report, the average profit per member, or the member with the highest share of the profits.

While abbreviated accounts can be filed for the public record at Companies House, full accounts would still need to be produced for the partners and for the Inland Revenue.