Step-by-Step Guide to Companies House ID Verification for Non-UK Residents

Living outside the UK doesn't exempt you from verifying your identity with Companies House. It does change which route works for you, and getting that choice wrong is the single biggest reason overseas directors end up stuck days before a deadline.

Every director and person with significant control (PSC) of a UK company now has to hold a personal verification code, whether they've set foot in Britain or not. New appointments have needed one since 18 November 2025. Existing directors have until their company's next confirmation statement date, somewhere between November 2025 and November 2026 depending on your filing history. The rule doesn't care where you live. What changes for non-residents is which documents actually work.

Step 1: work out if GOV.UK One Login will accept your passport

Start here, because it saves you money if the answer is yes. GOV.UK One Login, the free government service, accepts a biometric passport from any country, not just the UK. If your passport has the small chip symbol on the front cover, and it's current or expired within the last five years for a UK passport (or hasn't expired for most other biometric passports), you can likely verify yourself for free in around 15 minutes.

The catch is everything else. The app doesn't accept foreign driving licences or national identity cards, only biometric passports and, for UK-issued documents specifically, a UK driving licence or biometric residence permit. If your only photo ID is a national ID card from Germany, France, or anywhere else, or a non-biometric passport, the app will reject it and you'll need to move to Step 3.

Step 2: verify through GOV.UK One Login if you qualify

Download the Companies House identity verification app, or use the web-based version, and create a GOV.UK One Login account with an email address that hasn't been used to verify anyone else. You'll scan the chip in your passport using your phone's camera, then complete a live selfie the app matches against your passport photo. No documents are posted or uploaded manually; the whole process happens on your device.

Once the check clears, Companies House issues you an 11-character personal code. This is what you'll quote on every future filing, whether it's your own appointment as a director, a confirmation statement, or a new company incorporation. You don't repeat this process for each company you're involved with. One code covers every role you hold.

Step 3: use an Authorised Corporate Service Provider if the app won't work

If your ID doesn't qualify for GOV.UK One Login, an Authorised Corporate Service Provider (ACSP) is your only practical route. ACSPs are accountants, solicitors, and formation agents who are registered with Companies House and supervised by a UK anti-money-laundering body specifically so they can verify people on the government's behalf.

You can use an ACSP from any country. There's no requirement to visit the UK or appear in person. Most providers work through a short online form followed by a video call, where you show your ID documents to camera and complete a live face check with an agent rather than an app. Expect to provide a passport or national ID card, plus proof of your current address, typically a bank statement or utility bill from the last three months.

Fees vary a fair amount, generally somewhere between £30 and £100 depending on the provider and how quickly you need the code back. If you already have a UK accountant or solicitor, ask whether they're a registered ACSP before shopping elsewhere; it often saves a step, since they'll already hold your company details.

Step 4: check the ACSP is actually registered before you hand over documents

This step gets skipped more than any other, and it matters. Anyone can call themselves a formation agent. Only entities registered with Companies House and supervised by a recognised anti-money-laundering body can legally verify identities as an ACSP. Companies House publishes a searchable list of registered ACSPs, and checking a provider against it takes two minutes. Do it before sending a scan of your passport to anyone.

Step 5: link your code to the right role and company

Once you've got your personal code, it needs to attach to your specific role, whether that's a director appointment, a PSC notification, or an incorporation you're filing. If you're setting up a new business, this is where UK company incorporation and identity verification meet directly: Companies House won't process the incorporation until every proposed director and PSC named on it already holds a valid code. There's no filing first and verifying afterwards for new companies. The code has to exist before the application goes in.

If you're an existing overseas director bringing your details up to date rather than incorporating fresh, you link your code through your Companies House account or ask your ACSP to file it on your behalf as part of your next confirmation statement.

Common problems and how to avoid them

Name mismatches cause more failures than anything else. If your passport shows a middle name that doesn't appear on your Companies House record, or your date of birth was entered incorrectly years ago when the company was formed, fix that discrepancy before you attempt verification, not after a rejection.

Expired documents are the second most common snag. GOV.UK One Login won't accept an expired passport at all for the direct route, so check the date before you start rather than midway through a scan.

Time zones cause friction if you're working with a UK-based ACSP. Video verification calls generally happen during UK business hours, so factor that into your planning if you're several hours ahead or behind.

Where to check the current rules

Requirements shift as Companies House works through the rollout, and the authoritative version of anything here sits on gov.uk rather than in a formation agent's blog post, including this one. Search directly for the phrase verify your identity with companies house on the government's own site before you start, and you'll land on the current, exact document requirements rather than a summary that might be a few months out of date.