If you’re a company director or you’re about to become one, identity verification is now a legal step you can’t skip. Since 18 November 2025, every director and every person with significant control has to verify their identity with Companies House.
The good news: you can do it yourself in minutes, for free, through GOV.UK One Login. We walk who needs to, when, and how, and flag the one thing not to waste money on.
- Who: every director and every person with significant control (PSC).
- When: a legal requirement since 18 November 2025.
- How: free through GOV.UK One Login, or through an authorised agent.
- You get: an 11-character Companies House personal code, yours for life.
- Cost: £0 if you do it yourself. Don’t pay just for the ID check.
- New companies: everyone forming the company must verify before it’s registered.
Companies House Identity Verification at a Glance
The short version: every director and every person with significant control now has to verify their identity with Companies House, and there’s no way to opt out. The table has the who, when and how at a glance.
| Question | Short answer |
|---|---|
| Who has to verify? | Every director and every person with significant control (PSC). |
| Since when? | It’s been a legal requirement since 18 November 2025. |
| How do you do it? | Free through GOV.UK One Login, or through an authorised agent (an ACSP). |
| What does it cost? | £0 through One Login. An agent may charge, but you don’t need to pay one. |
| What do you get? | An 11-character personal code that links your verified identity to each role. |
| Forming a new company? | Everyone involved must verify before Companies House will register it. |
| Verified against GOV.UK and Companies House, 6 July 2026. | |
Who Needs to Verify Their Identity?
Two groups have to verify: every company director, and every person with significant control. A PSC is usually anyone who holds more than a quarter of the shares or voting rights, or who can otherwise control the company. We’d sort it the day you’re appointed.
If you’re being appointed a director or forming a company now, you verify up front. If you’re an existing director or PSC, you verify by your own deadline during the transition period, which is set out below.
When You Need to Verify
Identity verification has been a legal requirement since 18 November 2025. From that date, new directors and PSCs must verify before or at appointment, and anyone forming a company must verify as part of registering it.
Existing directors and PSCs get a 12-month transition. You verify by your own due date, usually tied to the company’s next confirmation statement.
Don’t leave it to the deadline. Leave it late and you hit the crunch: you’re logging in to file the confirmation statement that’s due, and it won’t go through until you’ve verified. We’d get it done early; it takes minutes.
How to Verify Your Identity for Companies House
There are two routes, and for most people the free one is all you need. Here’s what each involves.
GOV.UK One Login
This is the free route, and the one we’d point most people to. You prove your identity once through GOV.UK One Login, then reuse it for every company role you hold.
You’ll need photo ID, such as a passport or driving licence. You can verify using the GOV.UK ID-check app on your phone, which scans your document and face, or by answering security questions online if you’d rather not use the app.
It usually takes a few minutes. Once you’re verified you get your personal code, and that’s the bit you carry forward to each director or PSC appointment.
Authorised Corporate Service Provider
An Authorised Corporate Service Provider, or ACSP, is a firm that Companies House has authorised to verify identities and file on your behalf. In practice that’s an accountant, solicitor or formation agent registered with a UK anti-money-laundering supervisor.
This route suits you if you’d rather someone else handle the admin, or you’re already paying an accountant to set up or run the company. They verify you, often as part of a wider package.
Often that means your accountant verifying you the same day they set up the company, so you prove your identity once and they carry the 11-character code onto the incorporation.
It isn’t free: agents typically charge from around £25 to £100 for verification. That’s fine if you want the wider help, but paying purely for the basic ID check is money you don’t need to spend.
What Your Companies House Personal Code Is
When you verify, Companies House gives you a personal code: a unique 11-character identifier that confirms you’ve verified your identity.
It’s yours for life and follows you across every company you’re involved in. You use it to connect your verified identity to each director or PSC role, so keep it somewhere you’ll find it again.
What Companies House Identity Verification Costs
Doing it yourself through GOV.UK One Login is free. That’s the number we keep coming back to.
Because the One Login route costs nothing, you don’t need to pay an accountant or agent just for the basic ID check, and some charge £50 to £100 for it. Pay for one only if you also want them to handle the wider formation or your ongoing filings.
What Happens If You Do Not Verify?
Once your deadline has passed, acting as a director without verifying is a criminal offence. It can lead to financial penalties and an annotation on the public register against you and the company.
For a new company, there’s a simpler block: Companies House won’t register it until everyone forming it has verified. So verification isn’t optional paperwork, it’s the gate you have to pass through, and we’d never leave it to the deadline.
Picture getting to the final step of forming the company, only for the application to stall because one co-director hasn’t verified: nothing moves until they do.
Identity Verification When Registering a New Company
If you’re incorporating, verification is simply the first step: sort your personal code before you start, so it can’t hold up the application.
Our guide to registering a limited company walks the whole process, with identity verification in its place in the sequence.
Companies House Identity Verification Frequently Asked Questions
Do I have to verify my identity to be a company director?
Yes. Since 18 November 2025 every director and every person with significant control must verify their identity with Companies House. New directors verify at appointment; existing directors verify by their own deadline during the 12-month transition.
Is Companies House identity verification free?
Yes, if you do it yourself through GOV.UK One Login. An authorised agent can verify you instead and may charge for it, but you don’t need to pay anyone just for the basic ID check.
What is a Companies House personal code?
It’s a unique 11-character identifier you get once you’ve verified your identity. It’s yours for life and links your verified identity to each director or person-with-significant-control role you hold.
How long does identity verification take?
Usually a few minutes through GOV.UK One Login, using the ID-check app or online security questions. You’ll need photo ID such as a passport or driving licence.
What happens if I don’t verify my identity in time?
Once your deadline passes, acting as a director without verifying is a criminal offence and can bring financial penalties. A new company also can’t be registered until everyone forming it has verified.
How We Checked This Guide
What this covers. The Companies House identity-verification rules for company directors and people with significant control: who, when, how, the personal code, the cost, and the consequences.
What we checked. The rules and routes were verified against GOV.UK and the Companies House guidance on 6 July 2026. Identity verification became a legal requirement on 18 November 2025, with a 12-month transition for existing directors and PSCs.
What changed. Verification was introduced under the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act. You can verify free through GOV.UK One Login or through an Authorised Corporate Service Provider, and you receive an 11-character personal code.