Who has to verify their identity with Companies House?

Every director, shadow director, and Person with Significant Control (PSC) of a UK-registered limited company must verify. A PSC is anyone owning 25% or more of shares or voting rights, or with power to appoint the majority of the board. Sole traders without a company registration are not affected.

What is the deadline for Companies House identity verification?

Existing directors and PSCs have until 17 November 2026. However, your effective deadline may be earlier: you must verify before your company files its next annual confirmation statement after 18 November 2025, so check when your confirmation statement is due.

What happens if a director does not verify with Companies House?

Unverified directors cannot file any documents at Companies House, including confirmation statements. Acting as a director without verifying is a criminal offence. Fines of up to £5,000 apply, and Companies House can strike the company from the register for persistent non-compliance.

How long does Companies House identity verification take?

The GOV.UK One Login process typically takes 10 to 20 minutes, provided you have a valid UK passport, photo driving licence, or biometric residence permit. You receive an 11-character personal code once verified, which your accountant needs to file your confirmation statement.

Companies House Identity Verification: What Every UK Director Must Do Before November 2026

All UK company directors and People with Significant Control must verify their identity with Companies House before 17 November 2026. Existing directors who miss the deadline cannot file company documents, face fines of up to £5,000, and risk criminal prosecution under the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023.

Who needs to verify?

Identity verification applies to every director, shadow director, and Person with Significant Control (PSC) of a UK-registered limited company. A PSC is anyone who:

Owns 25% or more of the company's shares
Controls 25% or more of the voting rights
Has the power to appoint or remove the majority of the board

The requirement became law on 18 November 2025. If you run a company through Companies House, this applies to you.

What are the deadlines?

Role	Deadline
Existing directors and PSCs	17 November 2026
New directors appointed after 18 Nov 2025	Before appointment is filed
New PSCs who are not directors	Within 14 days of direction from Companies House

The effective deadline for most existing directors is the date of the company's next annual confirmation statement filed after 18 November 2025. If your confirmation statement falls before November 2026, your real deadline is earlier.

How to complete verification

Verification runs through GOV.UK One Login and typically takes 10 to 20 minutes if you have the right documents ready. You will need one of:

A UK passport
A UK photo driving licence
A biometric residence permit

Once verified, Companies House issues an 11-character personal code. Your accountant or company secretary needs this code to file your next confirmation statement - they cannot proceed without it.

What happens if you do not comply

Non-compliance carries both practical and legal consequences:

Unverified directors cannot file any documents at Companies House
Acting as a director without verifying is a criminal offence under the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023
Fines of up to £5,000 apply per director
Persistent non-compliance can lead to Companies House striking the company from the register

Verification blocks are also visible on the public register, which can affect credit checks and contract due diligence for your business.

Where automation helps

The verification step itself is a one-off process each person completes directly with GOV.UK One Login. What automation handles is the coordination around it - particularly in businesses with multiple directors or external investors who are PSCs.

A compliance tracking workflow can:

Send timed reminders to each director and PSC as their deadline approaches
Track who has provided their personal code and who has not
Alert the company secretary when all codes are in and the confirmation statement is ready to file
Log all chasing communications for audit purposes

For businesses with four or more directors or investor PSCs, manually tracking this across email threads is exactly where deadlines fall through the cracks. A structured workflow removes the risk of a missed filing because one director forgot to complete their verification in time.