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Frequently asked questions about verifying your identity for Companies House

Sep 8, 2025 | Blog

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As we prepare for verifying your identity at Companies House to become compulsory for directors, we have had a number of questions asked by clients, and we’re sharing our answers here

  1. Who needs to verify their identity at Companies House?
    This applies to ALL company directors – so it is not enough for one director only to complete this, all directors and persons with significant control will also need to verify their identity.
  2. If I’m a director of more than one company, can I verify my identity just once?
    Yes each director only needs to register once at Companies House and should share the same verification code with all companies they are part of
  3. When do I need to do this?
    The deadline for this is 18th November.  After this date you you won’t be able to file your Confirmation Statement at Companies House unless ALL directors have completed verification. You can verify now so it’s worth doing to get ahead.
  4. I already verified my identity with my accountant, do I need to do this again?
    Accountants, including Holy Brook, have been requiring identity verification for a long time to comply with regulations such as anti-money laundering requirements. However, this is a different process and Companies House require you to be verified separately.
  5. What is the cheapest way to verify my identity?
    Registering directly via Companies House is free and relatively simple, and I recommend it for most clients.  If you have any directors for whom this isn’t going to be a possibility, usually, if they have neither a passport nor a driving licence, you can use an ACSP, which will be a paid service in almost all cases. Holy Brook will initially only be offering this for existing clients, so get in touch if you are a Holy Brook client and you need to discuss.
  6. Does this apply to charity trustees?
    For Charitable Companies, your Trustees are also your directors so you will need to verify at Companies House. The Charity Commission has not brought in similar rules (at least not yet), so for CIOs and trusts, this doesn’t apply.

If you have any difficulties with this, we would recommend you contact your accountant. If you are a Holy Brook client, as we always encourage you – if in doubt, ask.

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