November 2026: The Hard Deadline for Board ID Verification
18 November 2026 is the final deadline for director identity verification at Companies House. Failure is a criminal offence.
John Hotham here.
The grace period for Companies House reform is ending.
18 November 2026 is the hard deadline for all existing directors and Persons with Significant Control (PSCs) to verify their identity. This is not optional.
Failure to comply is a criminal offence. It risks individual fines of up to £5,000, director disqualification, and the strike-off of your company. 6 to 7 million individuals are affected.
The administrative burden is significant. Waiting until Q3 2026 is a failure of leadership. You must verify now to ensure your digital filing credentials remain active.
Governance is the foundation of scale. If you cannot manage a basic ID verification mandate, you cannot manage a complex enterprise.
✨ Recommended For You
ECCTA Identity Verification for Directors and PSCs: What Your Company Must Do Now
Identity verification for UK directors and PSCs is now mandatory under ECCTA. The digital filing deadline is approaching. Here is how to comply without drowning in admin. Company Secretary module from £49/month.
The ECCTA Compliance Wall: Why Identity Verification Is Just the Beginning
ECCTA identity verification is now live. But ID checks are just the first brick. Here is what the full ECCTA Compliance Wall looks like and what your company secretarial function must do next.
Companies House Digital Transformation 2026: What Every Company Secretary Needs to Know Now
Companies House is overhauling its digital systems under ECCTA. Identity verification, new filing requirements, and software-only submissions are coming. Here is what your company secretary function needs to prepare. From £49/month.
Organise corporate records and board work
Keep entities, registers, deadlines and board packs together in Simplif-i.