Providing initial documents to the CMA
Updated 25 April 2024
© Crown copyright 2024
This publication is licensed under the terms of the Open Government Licence v3.0 except where otherwise stated. To view this licence, visit nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3 or write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gov.uk.
Where we have identified any third party copyright information you will need to obtain permission from the copyright holders concerned.
This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/mergers-forms-and-fee-information/providing-documents-to-the-cma
All documents submitted to the CMA (e.g. as annexes to the Merger Notice, in response to further information requests; additional analysis, etc.) must have a document number or annex number. Annexes should be numbered starting from 001, 002, 003 onwards. For example: Annex 001-Plan A; Annex 002- Plan B; Annex 003-Plan C. The numbering must be sequential and not overlap with numbers allocated to other annexes.
Please do not include special characters such as @, &, ‘, %, (, ), <, or > ~ # in file names.
All documents submitted to the CMA must be submitted in a readable and searchable format. Documents must be classified and indexed using Annex 2 to the Merger Notice, available on the CMA website.
Documents must be sent to the CMA electronically via secure file transfer or email, either in a format compatible with Microsoft Office programs, or as tagged PDF files. If files are password protected, please provide the relevant passwords.
Please submit spreadsheets, charts and all other digital source data files, as far as possible, in Microsoft Excel or their equivalent original format, to facilitate the CMA’s internal analysis. Should you submit spreadsheets without the underlying formulae, whether in hard copy or electronically, the CMA is likely to ask for such information.
When sending material electronically, please ensure that each file is given a succinct and self-explanatory title. Files should not be grouped into folders and sub-folders.
10MB is the limit for acceptance by our system of emailed material in any one message. There are no size limitations when using SFTP connections. However, please make the merger case team aware if the amount of documents is substantial.