PSC Verification Is Now Law: What Every UK Company Director Must Do

On 18 November 2025, identity verification for People with Significant Control stopped being optional. It became law. And yet, five months later, a remarkable number of UK company directors still have no idea it happened.

That is not entirely their fault. The change arrived as part of the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 (ECCTA) — a sweeping piece of legislation that most founders only heard about in passing, if at all. Companies House did not send a personalised letter to every director explaining what had changed. There was no countdown timer on the WebFiling dashboard. The requirement simply went live, and the clock started ticking.

If you are a director of a UK limited company — or you control one as a shareholder — this guide explains exactly who counts as a PSC, what the new verification rules require, and what you need to do right now to stay compliant.

What is a PSC, and why does Companies House care so much?

PSC stands for Person with Significant Control. In plain English, it is anyone who ultimately owns or controls your company. Companies House maintains a public PSC register for every UK company, and the purpose is straightforward: the public should be able to see who is really behind a business, not just which nominee directors or shell entities appear on the surface.

You are a PSC if you meet any one of the following conditions:

• You hold, directly or indirectly, more than 25% of the company's shares
• You hold, directly or indirectly, more than 25% of the voting rights
• You have the right to appoint or remove a majority of the board of directors
• You have the right to exercise, or actually exercise, significant influence or control over the company
• You have the right to exercise, or actually exercise, significant influence or control over a trust or firm that itself meets one of the above conditions

For the vast majority of UK limited companies — especially the hundreds of thousands of single-director, single-shareholder businesses on the register — the PSC is the founder. If you incorporated your company, own all the shares, and serve as the sole director, you are the PSC. There is no ambiguity.

Where it gets more complicated is when a company has multiple shareholders, when shares are held through another company, or when someone exercises control through a shareholders' agreement rather than direct ownership. In those cases, determining who qualifies as a PSC requires careful analysis — and getting it wrong is a criminal offence.

What changed in November 2025

Before ECCTA, PSC information was self-declared. You told Companies House who your PSCs were, they published the details on the register, and nobody independently checked whether those people were who they claimed to be. The system relied entirely on trust — a trust that was, as several high-profile fraud cases demonstrated, frequently misplaced.

The new rules introduced a requirement that is conceptually simple but operationally significant: every individual PSC must now have their identity verified. This is not a suggestion. It is a legal obligation under the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023, and failure to comply can result in criminal sanctions, restrictions on filing, and potential prosecution.

There are two routes to verification:

1. GOV.UK One Login — the PSC verifies their own identity directly with Companies House through the government's online identity service. This involves uploading a photo ID document (passport or driving licence) and completing a biometric check.
2. Authorised Corporate Service Provider (ACSP) — a registered agent verifies the PSC's identity on their behalf. This is particularly useful for PSCs who are overseas, who do not have compatible UK identity documents, or who simply want a professional to handle the process.

Filing HQ is an Authorised Corporate Service Provider, which means we can verify your PSC's identity directly and file the verification statement with Companies House — no government login required, no biometric selfies on your phone.

The consequences of not verifying

This is where founders need to pay attention. The new regime is not a gentle nudge. Companies House has been given real enforcement powers under ECCTA, and PSC verification non-compliance sits squarely in the crosshairs. Here is what is at stake:

• Criminal offence: failing to comply with identity verification requirements is a criminal offence. Directors and PSCs can face prosecution, and the penalties include fines and, in serious cases, imprisonment.
• Filing restrictions: Companies House can refuse to accept certain filings from companies whose PSCs have not been verified. This means you could find yourself unable to file your confirmation statement, update your directors, or make other essential changes to your company record.
• Annotations on the public register: Companies House can annotate your company record to flag non-compliance. This is visible to anyone who searches your company — including banks, investors, clients, and potential partners running due diligence.
• Reputational damage: in an era where corporate transparency is increasingly linked to trust, having a non-compliant PSC register sends exactly the wrong signal. Procurement teams, lenders, and even landlords now routinely check Companies House before signing contracts.

Who exactly needs to be verified?

Every individual who is a PSC of a UK limited company must have their identity verified. That is the simple version. The detail matters, though, because the rules handle different situations differently:

• Sole director-shareholders: if you own all the shares and direct the company, you are the PSC and you must verify your identity. This is the most common scenario and the most straightforward.
• Multiple shareholders over 25%: each individual who holds more than 25% of shares or voting rights is a separate PSC and must verify individually.
• Corporate PSCs: if a company (rather than an individual) is the PSC, the rules are different. The corporate entity itself is registered as a Relevant Legal Entity (RLE), and the individuals who control that entity are the ones who ultimately need to be verified — they are the people behind the corporate veil.
• Trusts and firms: where a PSC exercises control through a trust or unincorporated firm, the individuals behind those structures must be identified and verified.
• Overseas PSCs: being based outside the UK does not exempt you from verification. Overseas PSCs can verify through an ACSP — which is often the most practical route, since GOV.UK One Login may not support all international identity documents.

Directors who are not PSCs — for example, a non-executive director who holds no shares and has no significant control — still need to verify their identity under the separate director verification requirements, but those are handled through a different process. If you are both a director and a PSC, you need to satisfy both sets of requirements.

How the verification process actually works

If you are going through GOV.UK One Login, the process involves creating an account (or using an existing one), uploading a photo of your passport or driving licence, and completing a facial recognition check using your phone or webcam. It is broadly similar to the identity checks you do when opening a bank account or applying for a mortgage online. The system cross-references your photo ID against government databases to confirm you are who you say you are.

If you are using an Authorised Corporate Service Provider like Filing HQ, the ACSP verifies your identity using approved methods — typically by checking your identity documents in person or through secure digital verification — and then files a PSC verification statement with Companies House on your behalf. The ACSP confirms to Companies House that the PSC's identity has been verified to the required standard.

Either way, once verification is complete, Companies House records it against your PSC entry on the company register. You do not need to repeat the process every year — once verified, you stay verified unless your details change or Companies House has reason to request re-verification.

For most founders, the ACSP route is faster and less frustrating. GOV.UK One Login works well when it works, but it has known issues with certain passport types, older driving licences, and poor lighting conditions during the biometric check. If your first attempt fails, you may find yourself locked out of retrying for a period. Using Filing HQ's PSC verification service sidesteps those issues entirely.

Common questions we hear every day

I already verified my identity as a director. Do I need to do it again for PSC?
It depends on how you verified. If you verified through GOV.UK One Login, your verification may cover both your director and PSC requirements — but you should check your Companies House record to confirm. If you verified through an ACSP, you may need a separate PSC verification statement filed. When in doubt, Filing HQ's identity verification service can check your status and fill any gaps.

My company is dormant. Do I still need to verify?
Yes. A dormant company is still a registered company with at least one PSC. Dormancy does not exempt you from identity verification requirements. If you have not already verified, you need to do so regardless of whether the company is trading.

I hold exactly 25% of the shares. Am I a PSC?
No. The threshold is more than 25%, not 25% or more. If you hold exactly a quarter, you do not meet the ownership condition. However, you might still qualify as a PSC through one of the other routes — for example, if you have the right to appoint a majority of directors through a shareholders' agreement.

What if my PSC lives abroad and can't use GOV.UK One Login?
This is exactly what ACSPs are for. An overseas PSC can have their identity verified by an authorised provider without needing to access GOV.UK services. Filing HQ regularly handles verification for PSCs based outside the UK — it is one of the most common reasons founders come to us.

What documents are accepted for verification?
Through GOV.UK One Login, the primary documents are a valid UK or international passport and a UK driving licence. Through an ACSP, the range of acceptable documents may be broader, depending on the provider's verification procedures. Filing HQ can advise on which documents will work for your specific situation.

A practical checklist for directors

If you have not dealt with PSC verification yet, here is what to do this week:

1. Identify your PSCs. Look at your company's shareholding structure. Anyone holding more than 25% of shares or voting rights is a PSC. If you are the sole shareholder, that is just you.
2. Check your Companies House record. Search your company on the Companies House register and look at the PSC section. Is the information accurate and up to date? If someone has left the company or transferred shares, those changes need to be filed before verification can proceed.
3. Decide on your verification route. GOV.UK One Login for a straightforward self-service check, or an ACSP like Filing HQ if you want it handled professionally or if the PSC is overseas.
4. Gather identity documents. Have a valid passport or driving licence ready. Check the expiry date — expired documents will not be accepted.
5. Complete verification and confirm the filing. Whether you self-verify or use an ACSP, make sure the verification statement has been filed with Companies House. Check your company record to confirm it shows as verified.

The entire process, when handled through Filing HQ, typically takes a matter of days. There is no reason to delay — and every reason not to.

How Filing HQ makes PSC verification painless

We built our PSC verification service because the gap between "this should be simple" and "founders are confused and stressed about it" is real. The legislation is clear in principle but tangled in practice, especially for companies with complex ownership structures, overseas PSCs, or corporate shareholders.

As an Authorised Corporate Service Provider, Filing HQ can verify your PSC's identity directly and file the verification statement with Companies House. We handle the document checks, the paperwork, and the filing — you get confirmation that everything is done. If your company has multiple PSCs, we verify each one individually and make sure the full register is compliant.

And if your PSC information is out of date — wrong addresses, old shareholders who transferred out years ago, missing notifications — we can fix that too before the verification goes through. Our packages bundle PSC verification with your confirmation statement, registered office, and other compliance filings, so everything stays clean year-round without you having to think about it.