Guide
How to verify your identity for Companies House
Updated
There are exactly two lawful routes, both end in the same personal code, and Companies House says not to post or email your identity documents to it under any circumstances.
Route one: direct, free, through GOV.UK One Login
Companies House states this service uses GOV.UK One Login and is free of charge. One Login asks questions to find the best route for you, and you provide answers about yourself, not your company. Depending on your answers you are guided to verify with an app, by answering security questions online, or by entering your photo ID details on GOV.UK One Login first and then attending a participating Post Office (gov.uk). Companies House is explicit that these are the only options and that you should not post or email your identity documents to it.
Route two: an Authorised Corporate Service Provider
An ACSP, also called a Companies House authorised agent, can verify your identity on your behalf. Companies House gives accountants and solicitors as examples, and lists formation agents and chartered secretaries and governance professionals too. The agent must be registered with Companies House and supervised by a UK anti-money laundering supervisory body. You can use this route from any country. You provide documents from an approved list, and Companies House notes the agent may charge a fee. If you already have an accountant or solicitor, ask whether they are registered; if not, use the published list of ACSPs.
What you get, and what to do with it
- A Companies House personal code, a unique identifier that is personal to you, not to your company or the companies you work for.
- You normally verify once. Companies House states that in most cases you only need to verify your identity once and must not verify again unless told to.
- The code is then used repeatedly: on confirmation statements, on appointments, when you become a PSC.
- Treat it like a UTR. Companies House says to share it only with people you trust and to keep it secure, in the same way as other unique codes such as your HMRC Unique Taxpayer Reference.
- Verification is not the end. Companies House describes two steps: getting the code, then providing an identity verification statement that connects it to each role.
The legal meaning of 'identity is verified' sits in section 1110A of the Companies Act 2006, inserted by the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023. Companies House publishes a separate guide on how to meet its identity verification standard if you need the underlying assurance requirements.