Companies House Personal Code: What It Is & How to Get It (and Where to Find It)

What is a Companies House Personal Code?

A Companies House personal code is an 11-character alphanumeric identifier, formatted like AB1-23CD-4EF4. It is personal to you, is not linked to one particular company, and is not displayed on the public Companies House register. The code connects your verified identity to your director and PSC roles. This code is a mandatory requirement under the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 (ECCTA), the biggest reform to UK company law since 1844.

You use the same code each time you need to confirm that you have completed identity verification. You only need to verify your identity once. Use the same personal code for every director and PSC role you hold, but provide it separately for each role when Companies House requires you to confirm your verified identity.

Why Identity Verification is Now Mandatory?

Previously, anyone could register a company using false details with minimal checks. The new identity verification requirements connect a real person to every director and PSC on the public register. This makes it much harder to appoint fake directors or hide beneficial ownership, deterring fraud and increasing trust in UK companies.

Who Needs to Get a Personal Code?

Identity verification currently applies to:

• Company directors.
• People with significant control.
• People in equivalent roles, including members of limited liability partnerships and general partners.
• Individuals applying to register as an Authorised Corporate Service Provider.

A company secretary does not need a personal code solely because they are a secretary. They must verify if they also hold another role covered by the identity-verification requirements.

From no earlier than November 2026, Companies House plans to introduce identity verification for people who file documents and require third-party businesses filing on behalf of clients to be registered as Authorised Corporate Service Providers.

How to Verify Your Identity and Get Your Personal Code?

There are two routes for verifying your identity:

1. Verify directly with Companies House through GOV.UK One Login.
2. Ask an Authorised Corporate Service Provider to verify your identity.

The Post Office option forms part of the GOV.UK One Login journey. It is not a separate third verification method.

How to Verify Your Identity Through GOV.UK One Login?

Verifying directly through the Companies House identity-verification service is free. Sign in to GOV.UK One Login or create an account, then follow the route offered based on your documents and circumstances.

Depending on your documents and circumstances, GOV.UK One Login will guide you to verify your identity in one of the following ways:

• Through the GOV.UK ID Check app using suitable photo identification.
• By providing bank or building society details, your National Insurance number and answers to security questions.
• At a participating Post Office after entering your photo ID details through GOV.UK One Login.

If GOV.UK One Login directs you to a Post Office, complete the online steps first and take the required documents to the participating branch. GOV.UK normally emails the result of the identity check within one day.

After successful verification, sign in to Companies House using the same email address and open “Manage account” to view your personal code. If you verified after 8 July 2026, Companies House also emails the code to you.

How to Verify Your Identity Through an Authorised Corporate Service Provider?

An Authorised Corporate Service Provider, such as an accountant, solicitor or formation agent, can verify your identity on your behalf.

The authorised agent must complete checks that meet the Companies House identity-verification standard and submit your details, including your email address. Companies House then sends your 11-character personal code to the email address supplied by the agent.

If you do not receive the code, contact the agent and ask them to confirm which email address they provided to Companies House.

Deadlines: When You Must Provide Your Personal Code

The deadline depends on the role you hold and when you started that role. The date 18 November 2025 marked the start of the transition period, not one universal deadline for every director and PSC.

For New Directors

Anyone appointed as a director on or after 18 November 2025 must verify their identity before the appointment. Their personal code must be included in the director appointment filing.

For New PSCs

A person who becomes a PSC after 18 November 2025 can provide their personal code when they are first added to the Companies House register or within 14 days of being added.

For Existing Directors

An existing director must provide their personal code in the company’s next confirmation statement filed from 18 November 2025.

If the person is a director of more than one company, each company must provide the code in its own confirmation statement. The company’s confirmation date and filing deadline can be checked on the Companies House register.

For Existing PSCs

The 14-day period for an existing PSC depends on whether the PSC is also a director of the same company:

• Director and PSC: The PSC must provide the code separately within the 14-day period beginning the day after the company’s confirmation statement date. Filing the confirmation statement early does not change this period.
• PSC but not a director: The PSC must provide the code during the first 14 days of their birth month.

PSCs should check the Companies House register for the exact dates of their 14-day period.

For New Company Incorporations

For a company incorporated on or after 18 November 2025, the application must include the personal code for each proposed director. A person who will be registered as a new PSC can provide their code when they are added to the register or within 14 days afterwards.

How Directors and PSCs Provide Their Personal Codes?

A company must provide the personal code for each director in its next confirmation statement and confirm that every director has verified their identity. Companies House will not accept the confirmation statement until all directors have completed identity verification.

PSCs do not provide their code through the confirmation statement. They must use the service for providing PSC identity-verification details during their own 14-day period. A person who is both a director and a PSC must provide the same personal code separately for each role.

What Happens If You Miss Your Identity-Verification Deadline?

A director, PSC or equivalent who does not comply by their individual due date can commit an offence. A company can also be in breach if one of its directors or equivalent officers has not complied.

Companies House can respond through:

• Financial penalties.
• Prosecution through the courts.
• Referral to the Insolvency Service.
• Restrictions that prevent required filings or the formation of another company.

A director cannot lawfully continue acting as a director without completing the identity-verification requirements.

Where to Find Your Personal Code?

Where you find your personal code depends on whether you verified through GOV.UK One Login or an Authorised Corporate Service Provider.

If You Verified Through GOV.UK One Login

Sign in to Companies House using the same email address you used when verifying your identity. Open “Manage account” to view your personal code.

If you verified after 8 July 2026, Companies House also sent the code to your email address.

If GOV.UK One Login directed you to a Post Office, GOV.UK normally emails the result of the identity check within one day. After a successful check, sign in to Companies House and open “Manage account” to view the code.

If You Verified Through an Authorised Corporate Service Provider

Companies House sends your personal code to the email address the authorised agent provided for you.

If the email has not arrived:

• Check the inbox and spam folder for the email address you gave the agent.
• Contact the agent and confirm which email address they submitted.
• Ask the agent to contact Companies House if they submitted an incorrect address.

How to Save the Code to Your Companies House Account?

If an authorised agent verified you, save the code to a Companies House account so you can access it again later. To save the code:

1. Sign in or create sign-in details using the email address to which Companies House sent the code.
2. Confirm that you have verified your identity.
3. Enter your personal code.
4. Enter your date of birth.

Keep your code safe. You can share it with a trusted accountant or agent if they need it to file on your behalf, but do not provide it to unsolicited callers or messages.

Personal Code vs. Authentication Code: What’s the Difference?

A Companies House personal code and a company authentication code serve different purposes.

You do not automatically need both codes for every filing. The personal code is required when confirming a person’s identity-verification status for a covered role. The authentication code remains the company-specific code used to authorise online filings.

GOV.UK One Login is the account used to access government services. It is not another Companies House code.

What to Do if Your Details Don’t Match or Your Code is Compromised?

If Your Personal Details Do Not Match

If Companies House cannot connect your verified identity to its records, first check that:

• You entered the personal code correctly.
• The date of birth held by Companies House is correct.
• An authorised agent supplied the correct personal details when verifying you.

If the date of birth on the register is incorrect, follow the Companies House process for correcting a date of birth. You may need to replace the original filing that contained the error and wait for the correction to be processed before providing your identity-verification details again.

If an Authorised Corporate Service Provider submitted incorrect verification details, contact the agent. The agent may need to update the information it supplied to Companies House.

Do not complete identity verification again unless Companies House asks you to do so.

If Your Personal Code Is Compromised

If you think your personal code has been shared with someone you do not trust or has otherwise been compromised, contact Companies House and request a replacement. Companies House will email the new code to you and cancel the previous code.