Companies House identity verification: who must verify, and by when

If you're a director of a UK limited company, Companies House now needs proof that you are who you say you are. Identity verification became a legal requirement on 18 November 2025. Directors and people with significant control (PSCs) who were already in post on that date were given a 12-month transition to catch up, and Companies House says that transition ends in mid-November 2026, about five weeks from the date of this guide.

This guide covers who has to verify, when your own date falls, how to do it yourself or through an agent, and what happens if it slips. If you only want your date, the free Companies House ID verification checker works it out from three answers and shows the GOV.UK rule behind it.

What changed, and why

Until November 2025, a person could be named as a director on the public register without anyone checking who they were. The Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 changed that. Now the people who run and control companies verify their identity once, and Companies House gives each of them a personal code that links the verified person to every role they hold.

The key dates so far:

• 8 April 2025: voluntary verification opened.
• 18 November 2025: verification became a legal requirement. New directors have to verify before they're appointed, and the 12-month transition began for everyone already in post.
• Mid-November 2026: the transition ends, according to Companies House.
• No earlier than November 2027: verification extends to people who file documents at Companies House. Companies House says it will give at least six months' notice.

Who has to verify

Under the GOV.UK guidance on when you need to verify and Companies House's own campaign pages, these people must verify now:

• Directors of UK companies, both new and existing.
• People with significant control (PSCs). A PSC is usually someone who holds more than 25% of the shares or voting rights, or who otherwise controls the company.
• Members of a limited liability partnership (LLP).
• Anyone applying to become an authorised agent (ACSP) with Companies House.

Some groups are not covered yet. GOV.UK says verification will be introduced "at a later date" for limited partnerships, corporate directors, corporate members of LLPs and officers of corporate PSCs. People who file on a company's behalf come in from no earlier than November 2027. And you don't need to verify a PSC who has died.

When you have to verify

Your date depends on your role and on whether you held it before 18 November 2025.

Existing directors: the confirmation statement

For an existing director, the deadline is tied to the company's next confirmation statement, the annual filing that confirms the company's details are up to date. Each director's personal code goes into that statement, along with a ticked statement that they've verified. Companies House won't accept the confirmation statement until all directors have verified, and it emails companies before the statement is due to remind them.

On the Companies House register, the company's page shows a "next statement date" and a "due by" date 14 days later. The statement can be filed any time up to that "due by" date, so that's the latest point your code can arrive. But it can't be filed at all without the codes, so plan to verify well before then. If the company files its statement early, the codes are needed for that earlier filing.

An illustration: a company whose next statement date is 2 November 2026 has a "due by" date of 16 November 2026. Its directors need to have verified, and passed their codes to whoever files, before the statement goes in, and no later than 16 November.

If you're a director of more than one company, you verify once but give your code in each company's confirmation statement.

Existing PSCs: a 14-day window

PSCs work differently. Every PSC has a 14-day period in which to give their personal code through Companies House's Provide identity verification details for a PSC service.

• If you're a PSC but not a director, your window is the first 14 days of your birth month, using the month shown on the Companies House register. GOV.UK's example: a 22 January birthday means the window starts on 1 January. Companies House's blog gives a 24 February birthday as 1 to 14 February 2026. GOV.UK doesn't give a worked example for November or December. Read alongside the 12-month transition, a December window fell on 1 to 14 December 2025 and a November window falls on 1 to 14 November 2026. The register shows the dates Companies House holds for you, so check there.
• If you're both a director and a PSC of the same company, you give your code twice. As a director, it goes in the confirmation statement. As a PSC, your window is 14 days starting the day after the company's confirmation statement date. Companies House's example: a confirmation statement date of 31 March 2026 gives a PSC window of 1 to 14 April 2026. Filing the statement early doesn't move these dates.
• If you became a PSC after 18 November 2025, you can give your code when you're first added to the register, or within 14 days. Companies House sends a letter shortly after you're added, and the register shows your exact dates.

If you can't make your window, you can ask for a 14-day extension through the same PSC service. You have to ask before your deadline passes. Once it has gone, the extension isn't available.

How to verify yourself, step by step

Verifying online is free. You do it once, and GOV.UK says you must not verify again unless Companies House tells you to.

1. Get your ID ready. You'll need one of: a biometric passport from any country, a UK photo driving licence (full or provisional), a UK biometric residence permit, a UK biometric residence card, or a UK Frontier Worker permit. You'll also need your current address and the year you moved in.
2. Start on GOV.UK. Go to Verify your identity for Companies House and start the service. You sign in with GOV.UK One Login, or create a login if you don't have one.
3. Prove your identity. You can use the GOV.UK One Login app with your photo ID. If you live in the UK, the service may let you use your bank or building society details instead, with your National Insurance number and some security questions. You can also go to a Post Office in person, but you have to enter your photo ID details online first.
4. Get your personal code. Once you've verified, your 11-character code is in your Companies House account under "Manage account". Sign in with the same email address you used to verify. If you verified after 8 July 2026, Companies House also emailed it to you.
5. Give your code for each role. As a director, pass it to whoever files the company's confirmation statement. As a PSC, give it through the PSC service during your window, or share it with the company or your accountant so they can do it for you.

Verifying through an agent (ACSP)

If the online routes don't suit you, an Authorised Corporate Service Provider can verify you instead. ACSPs are agents registered with Companies House, such as accountants, solicitors and company formation agents. They must also be registered with a UK anti-money laundering supervisor.

The agent checks your identity to Companies House's verification standard, which is different from the usual checks an accountant does when taking on a client. Then the agent tells Companies House, and Companies House emails your personal code to the address the agent gives it. Make sure the agent has your correct email address.

GOV.UK publishes a list of authorised agents (ACSPs). Agents set their own charges, so ask before you book. If you already have an accountant, ask whether they're registered.

Your personal code, and where it's used

Your Companies House personal code is 11 characters long. It belongs to you, not the company, and you use the same code each time Companies House asks you to confirm you're verified. You'll need it:

• in a company's confirmation statement, if you're a director
• in an appointment filing or a new company's registration, if you're a new director
• in the PSC service, if you're a PSC
• in an LLP's confirmation statement or appointment filing, if you're an LLP member

Keep the code safe. You can share it with people who file for you, such as your accountant. If you think it's been shared too widely or compromised, Companies House can issue a new one and cancel the old one.

What happens if you miss it

GOV.UK and Companies House are clear that this is a legal duty, not a box-ticking exercise.

• The confirmation statement won't be accepted until every director has verified. If a confirmation statement isn't filed, GOV.UK says you can be fined up to £5,000 and the company may be struck off.
• It's an offence to act as an unverified director. Companies House says a director who keeps acting after the deadline without verifying may commit an offence, and so may the company. PSCs who don't verify may also be committing an offence.
• Companies House sends a default letter when a due date is missed. It says it may then take enforcement action without further notice. If you make a representation and Companies House accepts it, enforcement is usually paused for up to two months so you can comply.
• Enforcement can include financial penalties for the company or individual officers, prosecution, referral to the Insolvency Service, director disqualification, and a note against your name on the public register.
• New roles can be blocked. GOV.UK says an unverified person may not be able to be appointed as a new director, register a new company, or register as an ACSP.

This is already happening. In September 2026 the Insolvency Service announced its first prosecutions for identity verification offences: three directors were fined at City of London Magistrates' Court. The cases included directors who had acted while unverified, and one who hadn't taken reasonable steps to stop an unverified co-director acting.

Late filing at Companies House carries its own costs too. Our guide to Companies House late filing penalties explains the penalties for late accounts.

What to do this week if your confirmation statement is due soon

If your company's next statement date falls in the next few weeks, this is a short list to work through.

1. Look up your company on the Companies House register. Note the "next statement date" and the "due by" date.
2. Check every director and PSC. The register shows each person's verification status and due dates for their roles.
3. Verify anyone who hasn't. Online through GOV.UK One Login, or contact an ACSP now if someone needs to verify through an agent.
4. Collect the personal codes and give them to whoever files the confirmation statement.
5. Diary the PSC window for anyone who is both a director and a PSC: 14 days starting the day after the confirmation statement date.
6. Don't aim for the last day. The statement can't be filed without the codes, and a late statement is a problem of its own.

If you're setting up a new company, verify before incorporation, because the application asks for each director's code. Our first-cheque compliance checklist covers the other registrations a new company needs.

Once this year's statement is in, the next one comes round in 12 months, and your annual accounts have their own deadline. From the Starter plan (£29 a month ex VAT, see pricing), Ledgers tracks Companies House deadlines such as the confirmation statement and annual accounts, so each date is in view well before it's due. If you're a founder running your own books, our page for startups explains what else it does. You can start tracking your Companies House dates in Ledgers for free.

What's coming next

• People who file at Companies House will have to verify from no earlier than November 2027, with at least six months' notice.
• Agents filing for clients will, in future, need to register as authorised agents (ACSPs) to file on a client's behalf.
• Corporate directors, corporate LLP members, officers of corporate PSCs and limited partnerships will come in at a later date. No dates have been announced.

Check your date

The rules are simple once you know which one applies to you. The Companies House ID verification checker asks for your role, when you took it on, and either your company's confirmation statement date or your birth month. It gives you a date, the GOV.UK rule behind it, and what to do next. Then check that date against the Companies House register, verify, and pass your code to whoever files.

Guidance only, not legal advice. Sources: GOV.UK and Companies House guidance, including when you need to verify and Companies House's approach to non-compliance, as at 13 October 2026.