Identity crisis – Companies House begins to verify identities
On 8 April 2025, Companies House introduced identity verification for those who make filings on behalf of a business.
It is currently a voluntary process, but will become mandatory for new businesses by the end of the year and mandatory for everyone within 12 months of their most recent filings.
Who needs to verify their identity, and how do they do it?
You will need to have your identity verified to ensure you can file with Companies House if you are any of the following:
A director
A person with significant control
As with most identity verification, the accepted forms of photo ID are:
Biometric passports from any country
UK full or provisional photo driving licences
UK Biometric Residence Permits and Cards
UK Frontier Worker Permits
You may also need your current address and the year that you moved in to verify your occupancy in the UK plus - be ready to submit a selfie via an app from your phone.
Let us handle it for you
If you have received an email or notice from Companies House urging you to verify your identity, do not panic, and do not feel you need to act straight away.
We are an Authorised Corporate Services Provider (ACSP), registered with Companies House to carry out identity verification on your behalf.
There is no need to go through the process on GOV.UK yourself. We have already invested in secure technology that allows us to verify your ID and update Companies House directly.
While Companies House may prompt you to act now, there is an 18-month rollout window. For most clients, there is no immediate action required, we are managing the timeline for you.
Those in limited partnerships must use an ACSP for identity verification and filings as of 2026.
Once an identity is verified, it will remain so until any significant details change, such as changes to your name or address.
To stay compliant with the Companies House changes, speak to our team today!
