Companies House identity verification

Companies House says verification applies to company directors, people with significant control, known as PSCs, and anyone who wants to register as an authorised agent, called an Authorised Corporate Service Provider or ACSP. A director of several companies verifies once but gives their code for each company. Identity checks for people who file on behalf of companies are due to be introduced at a later date, and businesses that file for clients will in future need to register as an authorised agent; no date has been confirmed for that.

The timing depends on your role. Companies House's guidance, last updated 30 July 2026, sets it out as follows.

There are two main routes. The free route uses GOV.UK One Login, either with an app or by answering security questions online, and there is an option to enter your photo ID details on GOV.UK One Login and then visit a participating Post Office. The alternative is to use an Authorised Corporate Service Provider, such as an accountant or solicitor registered with Companies House, who checks your documents and verifies you on your behalf, and who may charge a fee for doing so. Companies House asks people not to post or email identity documents to it.

Once you are verified you get a Companies House personal code, an 11 character code that belongs to you rather than to any company. GOV.UK says you must keep it safe, although you can share it with someone who files on your behalf. In most cases you only verify once, and Companies House says you must not verify again unless it tells you to.

GOV.UK says that if you do not comply with the identity verification requirements on time you may be committing an offence, and you may face prosecution and a fine through the courts, or a financial penalty. It also says a company will be unable to file its confirmation statement unless all its directors are verified. The Companies House press release announcing the rollout also said new directors need to verify their identity to incorporate a company or be appointed to an existing one.

That press release also described a 12-month transition period for existing companies from 18 November 2025. The current guidance ties each director's deadline to their company's next confirmation statement rather than giving one end date, so check your own date in the company's Companies House account.

Because the director's step is linked to the confirmation statement, it makes sense to verify well before that date, so the statement can be filed on time. Our guide to limited company filing deadlines shows where the confirmation statement sits in the year, and new owners can read sole trader or limited company before forming one. If you set up a company through an agent, our page on setting up a limited company suggests questions to ask, including whether they are registered as an ACSP. We read every enquiry and, where we can, put you in touch with a local accountant; see how it works.