PSC verification: how PSCs verify for Companies House

What PSC verification means

PSC verification means an individual PSC proves their identity to Companies House and then links that verified identity to each company where they are a PSC. Verifying is done once, through GOV.UK One Login (free) or through an Authorised Corporate Service Provider (ACSP). The PSC then gives their personal code for each company within a set 14-day period.

The legal basis is the Companies Act 2006, as amended: section 790LN for PSCs registered before 18 November 2025 and section 790LM for new PSCs. The timing for existing PSCs comes from regulation 5 of SI 2025/1118. The same rules apply to PSCs of LLPs, with LLP members in place of directors (SI 2025/1033).

Which PSCs must verify

Every individual registered as a PSC must verify. There are a few exceptions and special cases:

• A PSC who has died does not need to verify. Companies House says they should stay on the register until a grant of probate or letters of administration has been received.
• Corporate PSCs (relevant legal entities) have no duty yet. See the section on corporate PSCs below.
• PSCs whose details are protected at Companies House, or who are waiting for the result of an application, cannot use the online service. Guidance does not say what they should do instead, so contact Companies House.

Your 14-day PSC verification window

Your 14-day window depends on your position on 18 November 2025. An existing PSC who is also a director gives the code in the 14 days after the company’s confirmation statement date. Any other existing PSC uses the first 14 days of their birth month. A new PSC has 14 days from the date of Companies House’s direction letter.

The 14 days include the first day, so a window that starts on 1 November ends on 14 November. A director-PSC whose PSC details are protected uses the birth-month rule instead (SI 2025/1118 reg 5(2)(b)).

Worked examples

These examples apply the rules above. Always check the dates Companies House shows for you on the register or in the service.

Companies House says filing a confirmation statement early does not change a director-PSC’s dates. Filing early also sets a new confirmation statement date, though, so if a director-PSC has filed early, rely on the dates shown on the register.

How to provide PSC verification details

To provide PSC verification, use the GOV.UK service “Provide identity verification details for a person with significant control (PSC)”. You need sign-in details, the company number and your personal code. Companies House says the service takes up to 10 minutes and only accepts the code once your 14-day period has started.

1. Verify your identity first, if you have not already, to get your personal code. Our Companies House ID verification checklist covers GOV.UK One Login and ACSPs. If you already have a code, do not verify again unless Companies House tells you to.
2. Sign in to the service, or create sign-in details.
3. Enter the company number. The service lists the company’s PSCs.
4. Find your name and enter your personal code.
5. Tick the statement confirming that your identity is verified.
6. Check the register. The company’s People tab shows your status, and Companies House staff say a completed role shows “verification requirements complete”.

You do not have to do this yourself. The service can be used by a PSC or by someone acting for them. Companies House says you can share your code with the company or an ACSP, who can give it for you during your window.

Check your date of birth early. If the details linked to your code do not match Companies House’s records, you cannot connect your verified identity. Corrections can take up to 20 working days.

If you are a director and a PSC: give your code twice

A director who is also a PSC of the same company must give their personal code twice, once for each role. As a director, the code goes in the confirmation statement. As a PSC, it goes through the PSC service in the 14-day window. Giving it on the confirmation statement does not cover the PSC role.

This is a common mistake. On the Companies House blog, one reader gave their code as a director on the company’s January filing, then received a letter in February saying their identity verification was overdue. Companies House replied: “you must provide your personal code twice, once for each role”. It is the same code each time, and you only verify your identity once.

Corporate PSCs: no requirement yet

Corporate PSCs, known as relevant legal entities (RLEs), do not have to verify yet. The RLE sections of the Companies Act were left out when identity verification started on 18 November 2025, and Companies House staff say there are currently no identity verification requirements for RLEs. Officers of corporate PSCs are listed as coming at a later date.

The planned rules, not yet in force, would have the entity name one relevant officer (for a company, a director) whose identity is verified. That would be done within 28 days, with extensions of up to 28 days at a time.

Need more time? PSC verification extensions

If you cannot give your details on time, you can ask for a 14-day extension through the same service. You must ask after your 14-day period has started and before your deadline has passed.

• Online: request each extension in the PSC service. The law allows extensions of up to 14 days at a time.
• After 2 online extensions: Companies House refers further requests to an examiner. Use the form “Request to extend the identity verification deadline for a PSC” and upload supporting evidence.
• Effect: Companies House says a PSC whose deadline has been extended “does not fall into non compliance, but instead remains compliant”.

Example: a November window of 1–14 November 2026, with an extension requested on 10 November, could move the deadline to as late as 28 November 2026.

What happens if a PSC misses the window

Missing the window without a reasonable excuse is an offence under section 790LT of the Companies Act 2006. In England and Wales the penalty on summary conviction is a fine. In Scotland and Northern Ireland it is a fine of up to level 5, plus a daily default fine for continued failure.

In practice, Companies House says it will:

• send a default letter, usually to the PSC’s residential address, and may take enforcement action without further notice;
• use options that include financial penalties, prosecution and referral to the Insolvency Service;
• in future, show a note against the person’s name on the public register (its pages word this differently, so treat it as planned);
• in future, stop people who have not verified from being appointed as directors, registering new companies or registering as an ACSP.

If exceptional circumstances stopped you meeting the deadline, you can make representations within the timeframe Companies House gives you. If it accepts them, Companies House says it usually pauses enforcement for up to 2 months so you can comply. Guidance does not say whether the service still accepts a code after the deadline, so contact Companies House if you have missed yours.

The guidance does not say a company commits an offence when one of its PSCs fails to verify. The company offence in section 167M covers unverified directors. Companies House does say it “may issue financial penalties at company or individual officer level where directors or PSCs fail to comply”.

PSC verification and the 17 November 2026 date

The 17 November 2026 date ends the transition for existing directors. PSC windows follow their own rules. All birth-month windows for non-director PSCs fall between 1 December 2025 and 14 November 2026. Director-PSC windows depend on the confirmation statement date, so some run until 1 December 2026.

Our AML deadlines calendar lists the 17 November date and other AML deadlines, and lets you sign up for reminders.

How many PSCs have verified so far

At 30 June 2026, 2,571,827 individual PSC appointments had been verified, or 41.86% of the total. That compares with 55.33% for director appointments. The figures count appointments, not people, and include dormant companies. Source: Companies House management information, identity verification, April to June 2026.

These are the latest figures we found when we checked on 26 October 2026. A newer release may now be available, so check the Companies House statistics page.

PSC verification is not your AML check on beneficial owners

If your firm is regulated under the Money Laundering Regulations 2017 (MLRs), a client’s PSC register entry and verification status are useful evidence. They do not replace your own customer due diligence (CDD) on the client’s beneficial owners. Regulation 28(4) of the MLRs requires you to identify the beneficial owner and take reasonable measures to verify their identity, and regulation 28(9) says you cannot meet that duty by relying only on the PSC information held by Companies House. Companies House itself says its identity verification standard is different from CDD checks to prevent money laundering.

AML Buddy covers the AML side only: your client verifies through one secure link, and you get sanctions and PEP screening, adverse media results and a timestamped report for the file. AML Buddy is not an ACSP and does not verify identities for Companies House.

This guide is general information, not legal advice. Check the latest Companies House guidance for each PSC’s circumstances.