The changes are being introduced to better identify money laundering moves and corporate fraud.
Through the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023 (ECCT Act) all stakeholders are required to submit a document to the registrar. The act ensures that the register’s information is complete and accurate, and their records do not mislead the public while preventing companies from breaking the law.
The rollout of changes followed the revelations that hundreds of fake businesses, some of them fairly obviously fraudulent, had been allowed to register with Companies House. Companies House estimates that 7 million people will have their identities verified under the ECCT Act.
The act will be introduced in phases, with the identity verification requirements for new business directors and people with significant control of a company (PSCs) taking effect in the autumn of 2025. They will be required to verify their identity when their company is incorporated, with a 12-month transition period for existing companies.
Trust and Company Service Providers (TCSPs) and other professionals, like accountants and lawyers registered for AML with a UK supervisor can register to become Authorised Corporate Service Providers (ACSPs) as of February 25. They can subsequently offer identity verification services to their clients and inform the registrar of passed IDV checks.
Voluntary identity verifications with Companies House are projected to open on March 25, 2025, and by spring of 2026, any document filed will have to be accompanied by an identity verification of the presenter. The act will continue to take effect in several further steps through the end of 2026, at which point compliance enforcement will begin.
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