Companies House is moving from guidance to a live compliance regime. A new Statutory Instrument laid on 23 October 2025 requires the registrar to add an annotation to the public register when an individual’s identity has been verified. The change underpins the 18 November 2025 start date for mandatory identity checks for company directors and people with significant control (PSCs).

In plain terms, once the registrar confirms verification under the Identity Verification and Authorised Corporate Service Providers Regulations 2025, a note will appear on the register stating that the person’s identity is verified. That duty will also apply for LLPs and, with modifications, for unregistered companies, making the verified status visible alongside core officer information.

The shift lands alongside Companies House’s confirmed timetable: ID checks become compulsory from Tuesday 18 November 2025, with a phased 12‑month transition for existing office‑holders. Companies House estimates 6–7 million individuals will need to verify by mid‑November 2026, and says enforcement will be proportionate during rollout.

Verification is tied to a unique identifier. When someone verifies through GOV.UK One Login or an authorised agent, they receive a personal code. From 18 November you’ll need that code for filings such as a confirmation statement, new director appointments and PSC notifications. The process via One Login is free; agents may charge.

LLPs get parallel changes. The Limited Liability Partnerships (Application and Modification of Company Law) Regulations 2025 require statements that confirm an individual “is verified” to also include that individual’s unique identifier. LLP filings are also tweaked so firms record whether a person is a designated member, with some data points (like corporate members’ service addresses) deferred until Companies House switches them on.

Transitional rules for existing LLP members are pragmatic: the LLP must deliver an identity verification statement for any pre‑existing individual member at the same time as its next confirmation statement after the go‑live date. If an LLP was already late on that confirmation statement when the regime starts, a 14‑day window applies from the relevant day.

For unregistered companies, the government has aligned the framework with the 2025 rules made earlier in the year. Existing directors of unregistered companies must supply an identity verification statement with the next confirmation statement after commencement; where the confirmation statement window hasn’t opened (or is open but not expired) on day one, the acting‑while‑unverified offence is held off until filing or the end of that window.

Overseas companies have their own schedule. If a UK establishment was opened before commencement, the company must confirm each notified director is verified and provide the unique identifier within a transition period that runs to the first post‑commencement anniversary of the establishment’s opening. Until then, the acting‑while‑unverified offence is paused for those directors.

Two practical points for company secretaries and finance leads. First, expect to see a visible “identity verified” note against directors and PSCs as Companies House processes verification outcomes-helpful for counterparties who check your filings. Second, internal onboarding should now capture each officer’s personal code and (for LLPs) designated member status to avoid rejected submissions.

This sits alongside the abolition of most local statutory registers from 18 November 2025. From that date, the Companies House record becomes the statutory source for directors, secretaries and PSC information; companies still keep a local register of members. The aim is a single, cleaner data set supported by ID checks and public annotations.

Directors should also be clear on the legal risk. From 18 November 2025 it is a criminal offence to act as a director while unverified, and the company commits a separate offence if it allows that to happen. However, the law states that any acts carried out remain legally valid; the sanction is criminal, not transactional.

Action list for the next month: ask every director and PSC to verify now via GOV.UK One Login, record their personal code securely, and diarise the company’s next confirmation statement date. For LLPs, prepare the verification statement workflow and check designated member flags are accurate. For unregistered or overseas structures, map your entity to the relevant transitional rule, so the verification statement lands ahead of the offence biting.