Since 18 November 2025, identity verification has been mandatory for new directors and People with Significant Control (PSCs) of UK companies. Existing directors and PSCs must also verify by the applicable deadline for their role.
Companies with overseas directors, individuals holding multiple directorships or several PSCs should therefore plan ahead to avoid delays to statutory filings, director appointments and company incorporations. If identity verification is missed, Companies House may reject company filings, block new appointments and take enforcement action.
Introduced in the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023, these are part of the UK’s efforts to prevent corporate fraud and increase the accuracy of information on the Companies House register.
If you’re looking to start a business in the UK, or you’re already operating one, these are important changes to take note of as they directly affect how directors and PSCs are appointed. In this article, we discuss:
- Who needs to verify
- 2026 deadlines for identity verification
- What identity verification means for businesses
- How to verify with Companies House
- What is an Authorised Corporate Service Provider (ACSP)?
- How Hawksford can help you as an ACSP
- After verification: Companies House personal code
- Companies House enforcement and non-compliance
- Other Companies House reforms businesses should prepare for
- FAQs
Who needs to verify
Identity verification is compulsory for the following:
- Individual directors of UK companies as well as directors of overseas entities that are registered in the UK
- Members of limited liability partnerships (LLPs), who are treated as the LLP’s equivalent of directors under UK law
- PSCs identified by criteria such as holding over 25% share or voting rights, or having the power to appoint or remove majority of the board of directors
At a later stage, this requirement is expected to extend to limited partnerships, corporate directors, corporate LLP members, and officers linked to corporate PSCs.
2026 deadlines for identity verification
One important point to stress is that an individual only needs to verify once. That single verification then applies across all roles and companies they are involved with. The following summarises the requirements your company needs to follow for new appointments and for existing directors and PSCs:
New appointments
From 18 November 2025, individuals taking on director or PSC roles in UK companies have been subject to mandatory identity checks. In other words, the process has changed.
For new directors, verification must be completed before the appointment filing is submitted to Companies House. The AP01 form for appointing a new director, or equivalent filing, will not be accepted unless the individual has already verified their identity. This is a significant change for companies that are used to making appointments quickly and formalising them later. Going forward, verification must come first.
For a new PSC, they may complete the identity check and provide the personal code when they are first added to Companies House, or within 14 days after that. However, if the PSC is included at incorporation or notified using a PSC01 filing, the personal code will be needed at the point of submission.
Existing directors and PSCs
For existing directors, the verification deadline is tied to your company’s next confirmation statement (CS01). By the time that statement is due in 2026, each director must have completed identity verification and must provide their personal verification code as part of the filing. If any director has not been verified, the confirmation statement cannot be filed.
This effectively staggers deadlines across the year. Some companies will need to act early while others may have until later in the year. Missing the deadline may result in penalties and further follow-up from Companies House.
For existing PSCs, the deadline will depend on their role. If the PSC is also a director, their verification will typically align with the confirmation statement process.
If the PSC is not a director, their verification must be completed within 14 days of the start of their birth month. Additionally, if the PSC or director holds roles across several companies, they may have multiple deadlines to manage. To avoid confusion, it is therefore crucial to verify early before any filing is due.
What identity verification means for businesses
Essentially, anyone who owns, controls, manages or formally represents a company must now confirm their identity. From a governance standpoint, this is a major shift. Corporate directorship in the UK is no longer anonymous. Failing to comply will therefore constitute an offence and can result in financial penalties, inability to make statutory filings, rejection of new company registrations or company strike-off.
How to verify with Companies House
Verification involves presenting government-issued documents, such as a biometric passport or UK driving licence, and matching it to the individual. This can be done through:
- GOV.UK One Login online service
- In person at a Post Office
- An Authorised Corporate Service Provider (ACSP)
What is an Authorised Corporate Service Provider (ACSP)?
ACSPs, also known as Companies House authorised agents, are organisations that Companies House has approved to provide identity verification services. To qualify, they must be based in the UK and be supervised by a UK Anti-Money Laundering (AML) supervisory body. Hawksford is officially registered as an ACSP with Companies House and can assist with verifying your company directors and PSCs.
Companies House has revised parts of the implementation timetable for people filing documents and third-party agents. Requirements for presenter identity verification and for third-party agents to register as ACSPs before filing on behalf of clients are now expected to take effect no earlier than November 2027, with at least six months’ notice. Businesses that use external filing agents should continue to monitor Companies House announcements as the reforms develops.
Why overseas directors often choose an ACSP
Non-UK resident directors are subject to the same Companies House identity verification requirements as UK-based directors. While overseas directors may be able to verify their identities directly through GOV.UK One Login access, the process can be more challenging depending on the identity documents they hold and whether they can complete the required online checks.
An ACSP can help manage identity verification and guide directors through the use of their Companies House personal codes across multiple appointments, reducing the risk of delays to incorporations and statutory filings.
How Hawksford can help you as an ACSP
While individual directors, PSCs and LLP members have the option to verify their identity directly with Companies House, many may prefer to do this through an ACSP. We see this being the case especially for overseas-based directors, who may face difficulty with accessing the GOV.UK website, receiving SMS security codes or having their passport recognised during the automated checks.
In our experience, these are some of the more common issues overseas-based individuals encounter when verifying directly. Some also prefer not to use the system themselves, in which case our team can support.
Using a secure software-based solution, we can help international clients complete the identity verification process in line with Companies House requirements. Our support can also be coordinated with company secretarial, governance and ongoing compliance requirements, giving businesses with overseas-based directors or individuals holding multiple UK directorships a more joined-up way to manage their Companies House obligations.
As an authorised agent, Hawksford is also well placed to support clients with identity verification and Companies House filings. With additional requirements for filing presenters and third-party agents expected no earlier than November 2027, businesses should prepare for the next phase while continuing to meet the identity verification obligations already in force.
After verification: Companies House personal code
Once identity verification is completed, a Companies House personal code will be issued. This is a unique 11-character identifier that confirms an individual has been verified.
How the code is issued depends on how verification is completed. Individuals who verify directly through the Companies House service can access their code by email or through their account. Those verified through an ACSP will receive the code by email.
Each person receives one code only, and that code can be used across all roles, companies and filings. Whether someone is a director of one company or ten, the same code applies. The individual does not need a different personal code for every company. However, the code and verification statement must be provided for each relevant role.
Where someone is both a director and a PSC, the same personal code may therefore need to be supplied separately for each role.
The code is used whenever verification needs to be demonstrated. This includes confirmation statements, new appointments, incorporations, and PSC notifications. Note that certain filings cannot proceed without this code.
Where support is needed with company filings, the code can be shared with a trusted accountant or ACSP. It should, however, be protected in the same way as other sensitive corporate credentials. If a code is compromised, Companies House can issue a replacement and cancel the original.
Companies House enforcement and non-compliance
Companies House is actively contacting companies, directors and PSCs about their obligations and has begun taking enforcement action where individuals continue to act without completing the required identity verification. The first prosecutions for identity verification offences were announced in September 2026, underlining that businesses should not assume verification can be left until the last moment.
Non-compliance can prevent a company from making filings or incorporating a new company, lead to financial penalties or prosecution, and result in a public register annotation. It is unlawful for an unverified director to continue acting after their deadline, and the company may also be breaking the law. Companies should identify due dates across all relevant roles, arrange for personal codes early and ensure the correct verification statement is supplied for each appointment.
Other Companies House reforms businesses should prepare for
Identity verification forms part of the wider Companies House reform programme under the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023. Companies House now has greater powers to query and challenge information, scrutinise filings and require greater transparency from companies and their directors.
From April 2028, all companies will be required to file annual accounts through commercial software, with further changes planned for small companies, micro-entities, filing presenters and third-party agents. Businesses should review their governance, filing processes and external support arrangements before these requirements take effect.
If you are unsure which deadlines apply to your directors or PSCs, or need support coordinating verification across multiple appointments, please get in touch with our UK team. We can assist with identity verification, UK company formation, director services, company secretarial services and ongoing compliance support.
FAQs
Speak to our experts today
Our experts are ready to support your identity verification and corporate governance needs
