Companies House: what do I need to know about the new identity verification process?

Companies House is introducing a new identity verification process under the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 (“ECCTA”). Compulsory identity verification for individual directors, members of LLPs and individual persons of significant control (“PSCs”) is planned to take place from 18 November 2025, with a 12-month transition period for existing individual directors, members of LLPs and individual PSCs in which to verify their identity with Companies House, and an opportunity to voluntarily verify their identity with Companies House before then.

Below is an overview of what is required.

Who will need to verify their identity?

The following people will be subject to mandatory identity verification rules:

• all new and existing company directors (including shadow and alternate directors);

• all new and existing PSCs;

• all members of limited liability partnerships (“LLPs”);

• all partners of limited partnerships; and

• anyone incorporating a company or filing any information at Companies House on behalf of themselves or a company or LLP.

What will the identity verification process look like?

Identity verification can be completed either:

• directly with the Government using the GOV.UK One Login; or

• through an Authorised Corporate Service Provider (“ACSP”) – these will be organisations authorised by Companies House to file on behalf of clients and registered with a supervised UK body for anti-money laundering purposes, like solicitors and accountants.

If you opt to use the GOV.UK service, you will need a One Login account, details of your current address and an ID document, for example a passport or a driving licence. There is also the option to verify your identity face to face at a Post Office or by answering some security questions online if you live in the United Kingdom. As an alternative, you can use an ACSP to verify your identity on your behalf.  

Once you have verified your identity, you will be provided with a Unique Identifier, which will be personal to you and can be used to connect your verified identity to your Companies House record for each role that you hold. In most cases, you will only need to verify your identity once and the Companies House register will be updated with any changes. 

What are the timeframes for identity verification?

From 18 November 2025, identity verification will be mandatory for individual directors, members of LLPs and individual PSCs, and there is expected to be a 12-month transitional period, during which existing individual directors, members of LLPs and individual PSCs will have to verify their identity with Companies House.

As part of these mandatory provisions, existing individual directors and members of LLPs will be required to provide their Unique Identifier as part of the company’s first confirmation statement after the 18 November 2025. The Unique Identifier will need to be provided for each office the person holds if they hold multiple offices.

The deadline for identity verification for individual PSCs depends on whether the PSC is also a director of the same company. If an individual is both a PSC and director of a company, the PSC will be required to provide their Unique Identifier in respect of their position as a PSC within 14 days of the company’s first confirmation statement after 18 November 2025. If an individual is a PSC of a company but not a director of it, they will be required to provide their Unique Identifier within the first 14 days of their birth month after 18 November 2025 – i.e. if the individual PSC’s birthday is in December, they will be required to provide their Unique Identifier within 14 days of 1^st December. 

For all individual directors and members of LLPs appointed after 18 November 2025, and those individuals who become PSCs after the same date, the time frames for identity verification with Companies House (or an ACSP) will be as follows:

• New individual directors will be required to verify their identity prior to acting as a director.

There will be a prohibition on directors acting when their identity has not been verified, and companies will be required to ensure that an individual does not act as a director until the person has been verified (although, it will not impact the validity of an individual’s acts as a director prior to identification). A new individual director will be required to provide their Unique Identifier to Companies House as part of the filing of their appointment or on incorporation. 

• New individual PSCs will have a 14-day period in which to verify their identity (measured from the date on which the company notifies Companies House of a PSC).

Anyone filing information on behalf of a company or LLP, or on their own behalf, from spring 2026, must be verified before they are able to deliver a document to Companies House (unless they are an ACSP or an employee or officer of an ACSP). If an individual is filing on behalf of a company, they will need to confirm that they are an officer or employee of the company. This means that, for group companies, a group Company Secretary will not be able to file on behalf of another entity within the group unless they are also an officer or employee of the company in question and their identity is verified. 

Further information will follow regarding the requirements for limited partnerships, corporate directors and corporate members and officers of corporate PSCs (known as relevant legal entities or “RLEs”). 

Once the new measures have come into force, it will be an offence to not comply with the new rules, and every officer guilty of an offence in England and Wales will be liable to a fine. Someone who has not verified their identity will also not be able to make any filings, incorporate a company or register as an ACSP. 

See here the Government guidance on ID verification.

If you would like to discuss this matter further, please contact Tamsin Eastwood, Partner and Head of Corporate and Commercial, or Miguel Pereira, Partner.

This document is for guidance only. The law and practice referred to has been paraphrased or précised and should not be construed or relied upon as legal advice. Please do not treat anything enclosed as legal advice or act on the information provided without first taking professional advice on your particular situation.