From 18 November 2025, Companies House identity verification (IDV) becomes a legal requirement for company directors and people with significant control (PSCs). New directors and newly notified PSCs must verify before they are appointed or within 14 days of being added to the register. Existing directors and PSCs enter a 12-month transition, with confirmation of verification linked to the next confirmation statement or the PSC’s 14-day birth-month window. In short, this is no longer optional – it is part of keeping your company on the register and able to file (Companies House, 2025).
The scale is significant. Companies House reported 5.43m companies on the register at the end of the 2024/25 year (Companies House, 2025), while companies now make up 76.7% of all UK businesses, according to the latest Office for National Statistics (ONS) business population bulletin (ONS, 2025). With so many directors and PSCs affected, leaving identity checks to the last minute risks bottlenecks, missed filing windows and administrative penalties. If you act as a director without verifying once the rules bite, you may be committing an offence and your company may be unable to file.
If you would like help getting ready – including acting as your authorised agent for verification – speak to us. We work with owners and finance teams across Scotland and the wider UK.
Who must complete Companies House identity verification
The requirement applies to the following individuals.
- Directors: All new directors from 18 November 2025 must verify before appointment. Existing directors must verify by the time the company files its next confirmation statement within the 12-month transition (Companies House, 2025).
- People with significant control (PSCs): New PSCs must verify within 14 days of being added. Existing PSCs will have a 14-day window tied either to the company’s confirmation statement date (if they are also a director) or to the first 14 days of their birth month if they are not a director.
- Limited liability partnership (LLP) members: Individual members of LLPs will also need to verify on a similar timetable.
If you hold multiple roles (for example, you are both a director and a PSC), you will need to provide your personal code for each role.
Two ways to verify – gov.uk One Login or an ACSP
There are two routes to complete verification.
- Direct with Companies House via gov.uk One Login: You can verify online with a biometric passport (any country), a UK photo driving licence, a UK biometric residence permit (BRP) or biometric residence card (BRC), or a frontier worker permit (FWP). You will need your current address and a gov.uk One Login, which includes two-factor authentication (Government digital service, 2025).
- Through an authorised corporate service provider (ACSP): An ACSP – for example, an accountant or solicitor supervised for UK anti-money laundering – can verify you and file on your behalf. We are accredited to act in this role and can manage the process end-to-end, including for overseas directors.
If you are unsure which route suits you, we can advise and, where appropriate, verify you as your ACSP. Get in touch with our team.
The personal code – what it is and how to use it
Once verified, you receive a Companies House personal code. Think of it as your unique link between your identity and any role you hold (director, PSC or LLP member). You will use this code when your company files its confirmation statement or when notifying a new appointment or PSC. If you verified with One Login, you can view the code under “manage account” at Companies House; if you verified via an ACSP, we can provide it and help you save it to your Companies House account for future use.
Important: Keep the code secure. Do not email it widely. We’ll ask for it only when we need to include it in a filing and will store it securely in line with our data protection protocols.
What we’ll need from you and how we’ll help
To complete verification smoothly, please have the following ready. We can check documents and guide you on anything that’s missing.
- Photo ID: Biometric passport, UK photo driving licence or UK BRP/BRC/FWP: These are used to match your identity through One Login or via our ACSP process.
- Address details: Current residential address and the year you moved in. This is required for online security checks and to match credit-reference data where applicable.
- Selfie or live video check: When using the One Login route, it confirms the document belongs to you.
- Companies and roles you hold: We’ll cross-check your director and PSC positions so we capture every filing that needs your personal code.
We can also review your confirmation statement timetable and help you plan when each director and PSC must provide their code, especially where individuals sit on several boards.
Deadlines, filings and examples
- New appointment example: You are appointed as a director on 25 November 2025. You must verify before the appointment is filed at Companies House. No verification, no appointment – the filing will not be accepted.
- Existing director example: Your company’s next confirmation statement after 18 November 2025 is due on 30 April 2026. You must have verified, and your personal code must be included with that statement.
- Existing PSC who is not a director: Your birth month is February. Your 14-day window to provide your PSC code opens on 1 February and closes on 14 February (first transition year starting 2026).
If you miss the deadline, you may be committing an offence and could face a financial penalty. Your company may be unable to file, and acting as an unverified director could lead to disqualification.
Quick action checklist (and timings)
- Check who must verify: Identify all directors, PSCs and LLP members across your group; confirm who holds dual roles.
- Map deadlines: New appointees – before appointment. Existing directors – by next confirmation statement within the transition year. PSCs – within the correct 14-day window.
- Choose how you’ll verify: Decide between One Login or appointing us as your ACSP to handle it for you.
- Gather documents: Biometric passport or UK photo ID, address history, and any company role details.
- Complete verification: Follow the online steps; we can supervise or complete IDV as your ACSP.
- Record your personal code: Save it in your Companies House account; share it with us securely when we prepare filings.
What’s at stake – and how we can support you
Identity checks are part of a wider reform package aimed at improving the accuracy of the public register and tackling abuse. The UK’s company population continues to grow – 5.43m on the register at the end of 2024/25 – so the new regime is designed to raise data quality at scale. From 18 November 2025, new appointments will be blocked until the individual is verified, and existing officers and PSCs will have to confirm verification on time during the transition period.
We can help you plan the timetable, register as your ACSP, verify UK and overseas directors, capture and store personal codes, and file your confirmation statements correctly. We’ll also review your statutory registers and filings so that director and PSC records align with the new identity-verified data on the register. If you run a group or have busy external directors, we can coordinate dates across multiple entities to reduce last-minute issues and protect cashflow if a filing is blocked.
Companies House identity verification support is coming! If you are a director, PSC or LLP member, start now so everything is in place before 18 November 2025. Contact us to schedule your Companies House identity verification, organise ACSP support and map your confirmation statement timetable. We’ll keep you compliant and filing on time. Speak to our team.