For financial years commencing on or after 1 January 2021, the parent exemption under s400, Companies Act 2006 for a UK intermediate parent company with a European Economic Area (EEA) parent no longer applies.
However, the s401, Companies Act 2006 exemption will be available where the EEA parent produces consolidated financial statements under EU-adopted IFRS Standards, which are equivalent to those required by UK company law.
If the EEA parent does not produce consolidated financial statements that meet the equivalence test, and nobody further up the group does, the UK intermediate parent will need to produce consolidated financial statements at UK sub-group level.