Getting ahead of director verification and ECCTA

Since Parliament passed the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act (ECCTA) in 2023, it has brought significant changes to Companies House and its register of British firms.  

The Act is intended to boost the reliability of the register, supporting national security and disrupting economic crime. It aims to move Companies House “from being a largely passive recipient of information to a much more active gatekeeper over company creation and custodian of more reliable data”, as a policy paper before the legislation explained, 

“Companies House will undergo a full transformation, with the ambition of being the most innovative, open and trusted registry in the world,” it noted.  

In practice, much of this means ensuring the information held on the register is accurate and complete, as well as digitising its data. It’s hoped this will prevent criminals from abusing registration to provide “a veneer of legitimacy” to their activities.  

The transformation is now well underway, but the responsibilities ECCTA creates don’t just fall on the registrar. For millions of British businesses, and over 7 million people, the work has yet to begin. And while the tasks are not too onerous, neither are they optional.    

Chief among these is the new identity verification requirement for directors, LLP members and people with significant control (PSCs), as well as those filing documents with Companies House, such as accountants or administrative staff. From Autumn 2025, all will have to verify their identity with Companies House:  

• Directors of companies incorporating after the implementation of mandatory verification in the Autumn will have to have their ID verified before the incorporation date. PSCs have 14 days from the date of incorporation to verify 
• Directors of existing companies and LLP members have 12 months from the date of implementation to verify as part of the annual confirmation statement process 
• Those filing documents with Companies House will need to be verified from the Spring of 2026 

By the end of that year, all individuals will be verified.  

In introducing the verification requirements, ECCTA also amended the Companies Act 2006 to prohibit directors from acting unless their IDs are verified. Those acting without verification will be committing an offence and liable to an unlimited fine. Another amendment, meanwhile, compels companies to ensure individuals don’t act as directors unless verified, again under threat of a fine for failing to do so.  

Avoiding these penalties should be relatively easy for legitimate businesses and individuals. While mandatory verification begins in Autumn 2025 (the date remains unspecified), voluntary verification has been available since 8 April 2025.  

There are two ways to verify your identity: Either through the link online using the GOV.UK One Login service or through an authorised corporate service provider (ACSP). The GOV.UK One Login allows for the verification via a mobile app, a computer or the Post Office. Once verification is complete, Companies House will issue a unique personal code, and individuals can use this to connect their identity to any relevant companies.  

Launching the service in April, Companies House CEO Louise Smyth encouraged directors and PSC to verify voluntarily “to save time later”. Directors and company leadership should take time to check the accuracy of details held by Companies House, make updates where required and put a reminder in their diaries to look out for the full implementation of ID verification, which will be required on the next filing of confirmation statement after the implementation date.

If you want to discuss the implementation of verification for you or others in your business, please get in touch.