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Gary Gray<\/a>\u00a0of Pinsent Masons\u00a0was commenting ahead of the end of the 12-month transition period for verifying the identity of UK corporate directors, on 17 November. <\/p>\n New identity verification requirements became mandatory last November to help tackle economic crime and to prevent misuse of the UK companies register. <\/p>\n Historically, Companies House, which is responsible for incorporating, dissolving, and registering limited companies in the UK, has had no powers to verify the information submitted by companies. <\/p>\n However, on 18 November 2025, it became a legal requirement<\/a>\u00a0under the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 (ECCTA) for directors, and individuals who own or control a company \u2013 often referred to as \u2018persons with significant control\u2019 (PSCs) \u2013 to verify their identities with Companies House. <\/p>\n The change is aimed at preventing fraud and providing greater assurance on who is setting up, running, owning and controlling companies in the UK. Companies House opted to phase in the new requirements over a 12-month transition period to give business owners time to adjust to the new regime and submit their filings. <\/p>\n Directors and those equivalent of directors, such as LLP members; PSCs; and beneficial owners were among the initial wave of people in-scope of the requirements. <\/p>\n Authorised corporate service providers (ACSPs), which are Companies House authorised agents, are already required to verify their identity as part of the authorised agent regime. Separate identity verification requirements for individuals who file information at Companies House are expected to be introduced at a later stage, no earlier than November 2027.<\/p>\n Failure to comply by the applicable deadline can constitute an offence and may result in financial penalties or prosecution. An unverified individual may also be prevented from acting as a director, and the company may face restrictions on making filings. Persistent non-compliance could expose individuals and companies to further enforcement action.<\/p>\n Gray, a corporate governance expert at Pinsent Masons, said it is critical for directors and PSCs to have completed their identity verification requirements ahead of the transition period ending on 17 November.\u00a0 \u201cIndividuals that have not yet completed verification are running out of time to comply,\u201d he said. <\/p>\n There were just over 5.5 million companies<\/a> on the Companies House register as of June 2026. Companies House has said previously that it estimates that between six and seven million individuals<\/a> would need to verify their identity by the end of the transition period. <\/p>\n A freedom of information (FOI) request<\/a> by Spotlight on Corruption revealed that between November 2025 and May 2026 the registry had already sent 983,000 non-compliance letters to directors and controlling shareholders of businesses that had failed to comply with the new requirements. The campaign group also reported that Companies House said 183,000 directors or controlling shareholders of UK companies still hadn’t submitted the necessary identification requirements as of May 2026.<\/p>\n An individual will generally complete the identity check only once. They will then receive a Companies House personal code, which must be used to connect their verified identity to each relevant company appointment or role.<\/p>\n For an existing director, the relevant step will generally need to be completed when the company files its first confirmation statement during the transition period. PSC deadlines depend on the nature of the PSC\u2019s role and the appointed day shown on the Companies House register. Companies should therefore check the register for the due date attached to each individual and each role rather than working from a single group-wide deadline.<\/p>\n