How to file a PSC notification at Companies House: the 2026 guide for UK directors

Every UK limited company must keep a register of people with significant control — the individuals or entities that ultimately own or direct the business. Since 18 November 2025, every PSC must also verify their identity with Companies House under the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act (ECCTA). Yet in practice, the part that trips founders up is not the concept or the verification — it is the notification. When do you file? Which form do you use? What happens if the details change? And what is the deadline you cannot miss?

If your company has issued shares to a co-founder, brought in an investor, restructured its voting rights, or even just incorporated with a single shareholder-director, you have at least one PSC — and you almost certainly have a filing obligation. Yet Companies House data consistently shows that PSC notifications are among the most commonly late or incorrect filings, and late notifications now attract sharper scrutiny under ECCTA's expanded enforcement powers.

This guide walks through everything a UK director needs to know about PSC notifications: who qualifies, which forms to use, the step-by-step process for filing a PSC01, what triggers a new notification, and the mistakes that cost founders time and credibility.

What is a person with significant control?

A person with significant control (PSC) is any individual who meets one or more of five conditions set out in the Companies Act 2006. The PSC regime was introduced to increase transparency around who really owns and controls UK companies — piercing through nominee arrangements, shell structures, and opaque shareholdings to reach the humans at the end of the chain.

For most small and medium UK companies the PSC picture is straightforward: anyone who holds a meaningful stake or has a controlling influence is likely a PSC, and the company must identify them, record them on its internal PSC register, and notify Companies House.

The five PSC conditions

An individual is a PSC of your company if they satisfy any one of the following conditions:

1. Shares: the individual holds, directly or indirectly, more than 25% of the company's shares.
2. Voting rights: the individual holds, directly or indirectly, more than 25% of the company's voting rights.
3. Right to appoint or remove directors: the individual holds the right, directly or indirectly, to appoint or remove a majority of the board of directors.
4. Significant influence or control: the individual has the right to exercise, or actually exercises, significant influence or control over the company.
5. Trust or firm control: the individual has the right to exercise, or actually exercises, significant influence or control over the activities of a trust or firm that itself satisfies any of conditions 1–4.

Note the threshold: it is more than 25%, not 25% exactly. A shareholder holding precisely 25% of shares does not meet condition 1. The moment they acquire a single additional share that tips them over 25%, they become a PSC and the company must notify Companies House.

Relevant legal entities (RLEs)

The PSC regime also captures relevant legal entities — companies, LLPs, or other bodies that are themselves subject to their own PSC disclosure requirements. If a UK limited company holds more than 25% of your company's shares, it may be registrable as an RLE rather than requiring you to trace through to the individual behind it. This is more common in corporate group structures. The notification form for an RLE is PSC02 rather than PSC01.

Indirect holdings and joint arrangements

The five conditions include the words "directly or indirectly". This means you cannot avoid the PSC register by holding shares through a nominee, a trust, or an intermediate company that is not itself subject to the PSC regime. If the beneficial owner behind any such structure meets one of the five conditions, they are a PSC and must be notified.

Joint arrangements — where two or more people act together to exercise rights — are also caught. If two individuals each hold 15% of shares but have an agreement to vote together, their combined 30% means each could be a PSC.

When must you file a PSC notification?

A PSC notification must be filed with Companies House whenever there is a change to the PSC position of your company. The most common triggers are:

• Incorporation: when you incorporate a company, the initial PSC details are captured in the formation documents. If you used an agent for incorporation, confirm that the PSC information was filed correctly — this is one of the most common sources of day-one errors.
• Share issue: when you issue new shares and the recipient crosses the 25% threshold, they become a PSC. If an existing shareholder is diluted below 25%, they cease to be one.
• Share transfer: when shares are transferred between parties and the transfer pushes someone over or under the 25% threshold.
• New investment: when an angel investor, venture capital fund, or family member acquires a stake that gives them more than 25% of shares or voting rights.
• Change of details: when an existing PSC changes their name, residential address, nationality, or the nature of their control.
• Ceasing to be a PSC: when someone sells shares, resigns a controlling directorship, or otherwise no longer meets any of the five conditions.

The 14-day filing deadline

The company has a duty under section 790D of the Companies Act 2006 to keep its PSC register up to date and to deliver notification to Companies House within 14 days of any change. In practice, the clock works in two stages:

1. The company must take reasonable steps to identify its PSCs and confirm their details — a duty that runs continuously, not just at filing time.
2. Once the company knows or ought to know about a change, it must update its internal PSC register and file the notification at Companies House within 14 days.

Missing the deadline is a criminal offence on the part of the company and every officer in default. In practice, Companies House rarely prosecutes minor delays — but under ECCTA's expanded enforcement powers, the risk is rising, and a pattern of late PSC filings is exactly the kind of governance weakness that attracts attention from intelligence analysts and compliance teams.

The PSC notification forms explained

Companies House uses a family of nine PSC forms, each covering a specific scenario. You will almost always use one of four:

The remaining forms — PSC03, PSC05, PSC06, PSC08, PSC09 — handle the equivalent scenarios for other registrable persons (ORPs) and relevant legal entities (RLEs). Most single-director or small-team companies will only ever file a PSC01 and, occasionally, a PSC04 or PSC07.

How to file a PSC01 notification: step by step

The PSC01 is the form you file when an individual becomes a person with significant control for the first time. Here is the process:

Step 1: Confirm the person meets at least one PSC condition

Before filing anything, verify which of the five conditions the person satisfies. The PSC01 requires you to state the nature of control — which specific condition or conditions apply. Getting this wrong is one of the most common errors on PSC filings, and it can require a correction filing later.

For most founder-led companies, the answer is straightforward: the founder holds more than 25% of shares (condition 1) and more than 25% of voting rights (condition 2). For an investor taking a board seat with protective provisions, condition 3 or 4 may also apply.

Step 2: Gather the required information

The PSC01 asks for the following details about the individual:

• Full legal name, including any former names used in the last 20 years
• Date of birth (the day is redacted on the public register; month and year are visible)
• Nationality
• Country or state of usual residence
• Service address — the address that will appear on the public register
• Usual residential address — kept confidential, not published
• Date the person became a PSC — typically the date shares were allotted, transferred, or the company was incorporated
• Nature of control — which of the five conditions apply, and the extent of shareholding or voting rights (over 25% up to 50%, over 50% up to 75%, or 75% or more)
• Identity verification reference — mandatory since 18 November 2025

Collect all of this in a single request. Like the director appointment form AP01, drip-feeding details across multiple emails is the biggest source of delays.

Step 3: Ensure the PSC has completed identity verification

Since 18 November 2025, every individual PSC must have a verified identity at Companies House before the PSC01 can be filed. This is the same requirement that applies to directors under ECCTA — and the same two routes are available:

1. GOV.UK One Login — free, self-service, requires a government-issued photo ID and a smartphone for the liveness check.
2. Through an Authorised Corporate Service Provider (ACSP) — a registered agent, law firm, or accountant verifies the person's identity to the Companies House standard.

Identity verification is a one-off per person. If the PSC has already verified their identity for a director appointment or for another company, they do not need to do it again — the same verification reference carries across. Filing HQ's PSC verification service handles both the identity check and the notification as a single workflow.

For a deeper look at how verification works, including what documents are accepted and how the GOV.UK One Login process runs, see our identity verification explainer and our guide to PSC verification requirements.

Step 4: File the PSC01 at Companies House

PSC01 can be filed online through Companies House WebFiling or on paper. Online filing is processed within minutes; paper can take several working days. You will need your company's authentication code — the six-character credential posted to your registered office after incorporation.

File the notification within 14 days of the person becoming a PSC. The effective date on the form must match reality — if shares were allotted on 1 May and you file the PSC01 on 10 May, the "date became a PSC" field should read 1 May, not 10 May.

Step 5: Update your internal PSC register

Filing the PSC01 updates the public Companies House register, but your company must also maintain its own internal PSC register — one of the statutory registers required by the Companies Act 2006. The internal register is the legally authoritative record. Banks, investors, auditors, and courts look at the statutory register, not the Companies House website, when verifying PSC details. Keep it accurate and up to date. For more on which registers you must maintain, see our statutory registers guide.

Filing a PSC04: when PSC details change

If an existing PSC's details change — a new residential address, a change of name, a shift in the nature or extent of their control — you file a PSC04 (for individuals). The same 14-day deadline applies from the date the company becomes aware of the change.

The most common PSC04 scenario is a change to the extent of control after a share issue or transfer. For example, if a sole founder holding 100% of shares issues equity to a co-founder and drops to 60%, the nature of their control changes from "75% or more" to "more than 50% but not more than 75%". That shift requires a PSC04, even though the founder remains a PSC.

Similarly, if a new investor's stake tips the founder below 50%, another PSC04 is needed. Founders who issue new shares regularly — across multiple funding rounds — often need a PSC04 filed alongside each SH01.

Filing a PSC07: ceasing to be a PSC

When someone ceases to be a PSC — they sell their shares, are diluted below 25%, or relinquish control — the company must file a PSC07 within 14 days. The form is straightforward: it identifies the person, states the date they ceased to be a PSC, and the company updates both the public register and its internal PSC register.

This frequently arises during share transfers. If a departing co-founder transfers their entire holding to the remaining founder, that transfer triggers a PSC07 for the departing co-founder and potentially a PSC04 for the remaining founder (whose control percentage has increased).

Common mistakes with PSC notifications

PSC notifications look simple on the surface — a few fields, a 14-day window — but they generate a disproportionate number of errors. These are the ones we untangle most often:

1. Filing the PSC01 before identity verification is complete. The same trap as with director appointments: Companies House will reject the form if the verification reference is missing or invalid. Verify first, file second — and sequence both within the 14-day window.
2. Getting the nature of control wrong. The PSC01 asks you to specify which of the five conditions apply and the extent of shareholding or voting rights (over 25% up to 50%, over 50% up to 75%, or 75% or more). Founders frequently tick the wrong bracket, especially after a share issue that has changed the percentages.
3. Forgetting the PSC04 when control percentages change. A share issue that dilutes a PSC from 80% to 55% changes the registrable extent of control. This requires a PSC04 even though the person is still a PSC. Many founders file the SH01 for the new shares but forget the corresponding PSC update.
4. Using a home address as the service address. Just like director appointments, the PSC's service address goes on the public register. Using a residential address exposes it to data aggregators and scrapers. A proper service address costs very little and keeps personal details private.
5. Not filing a PSC07 when someone ceases to be a PSC. Founders remember to file when someone becomes a PSC but forget to file when they leave. A stale PSC register creates confusion for banks, investors, and anyone relying on the public record — and it is a compliance breach.
6. Treating the confirmation statement as a substitute for event-driven filings. PSC changes must be filed within 14 days of the event, not batched into the next confirmation statement. The confirmation statement confirms the register is accurate at the review date — it does not replace the obligation to notify promptly.

PSC notifications and the company's duty to investigate

The Companies Act 2006 imposes an active duty on every company to take reasonable steps to find out whether there are people who are PSCs and, if so, to identify them. This is not a passive obligation — you cannot simply wait for shareholders to tell you. The company must investigate, and it has statutory tools to do so.

Under section 790D, the company can serve a notice on any person it reasonably believes to be a PSC (or to know the identity of a PSC) requiring them to confirm or deny the position and provide specified particulars. Failure to comply with such a notice is itself an offence, and the company can apply restrictions to the shares held by a non-compliant person — including suspending voting rights, dividend entitlements, and the right to transfer the shares.

For most small companies with a handful of known shareholders, this duty is easily discharged. It becomes materially more important as the shareholder base grows, nominee structures are introduced, or shares are transferred to parties the directors do not personally know.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a Companies House fee for filing a PSC notification?

No. Filing a PSC01, PSC04, PSC07, or any other PSC form is free at Companies House, whether filed online or on paper. The cost, if any, sits with identity verification (free via GOV.UK One Login, or a fee via an ACSP) and with the professional time to prepare and file the form correctly.

Does a shareholder holding exactly 25% need to be notified as a PSC?

No. The threshold is more than 25%, not 25% or more. A shareholder holding exactly 25% of shares does not meet condition 1. The moment they acquire a single additional share that takes them above 25%, they become a PSC and the notification obligation arises.

Can a company be a PSC?

Not exactly. A company cannot be a PSC in the individual sense, but it can be a relevant legal entity (RLE) if it meets the same ownership or control thresholds and is itself subject to PSC disclosure requirements. RLEs are notified using form PSC02 rather than PSC01. If the corporate shareholder is not subject to its own PSC regime (for example, an overseas entity not on the UK register), you must look through it to the individuals behind it.

What happens if I file the PSC01 late?

Failure to notify Companies House of a PSC within the 14-day deadline is a criminal offence on the part of the company and every officer in default (section 790F, Companies Act 2006). In practice, Companies House has historically focused enforcement on serious or persistent non-compliance, but ECCTA has expanded their enforcement tools and intelligence capability. Late PSC filings are also a red flag during bank account applications, investment due diligence, and property transactions.

Do I need to file a PSC notification if nothing has changed since incorporation?

If the initial PSC details were correctly captured during incorporation and nothing has changed, you do not need to file a separate PSC01 — the incorporation filing covers it. However, you do need to confirm the accuracy of your PSC register through each annual confirmation statement. If you discover at that point that the original details were wrong, you must correct them with the appropriate PSC form.

Does each PSC need to verify their identity?

Yes. Since 18 November 2025, every individual PSC must complete identity verification with Companies House. The two lawful routes are GOV.UK One Login (free, self-service) and through an ACSP. Verification is a one-off per person — once verified, the reference carries across to any company they are a PSC or director of.

Let Filing HQ handle it

PSC notifications sit at the intersection of share issues, director changes, identity verification, and statutory register maintenance. Getting one filing right is straightforward. Keeping the whole picture consistent — especially when you are issuing equity, bringing in investors, or restructuring — is where founders lose time and make mistakes that are expensive to unwind during due diligence.

Filing HQ files PSC notifications as part of a complete compliance workflow. When you issue shares or transfer shares, we automatically flag the PSC implications and prepare the corresponding notifications. Identity verification, form preparation, Companies House filing, and statutory register updates are handled end to end — so nothing falls between the cracks.