Companies House identity verification in Bristol
58,701 live companies are registered to a Bristol address, and every one of their directors and people with significant control must now verify their identity with Companies House. We are a registered Authorised Corporate Service Provider and we do that for you, remotely or by appointment, for a flat £125.
How big the Bristol verification market actually is
Bristol has 58,701 live companies registered to its post town and the BS postcode area holds 72,208 (Companies House Free Company Data Product, snapshot 2026-08-01). It is the largest company centre in the south west of England by a wide margin, ahead of Cheltenham (14,802), Swindon (14,349), Exeter (12,998), Plymouth (12,504) and Bath (9,461).
The regional picture is broader than the city. Adding the GL postcode area (46,396) and the neighbouring Welsh capital Cardiff (53,910) gives a Severn-side director population that is comfortably larger than any single city figure would suggest (Companies House bulk data). No Google autocomplete corpus exists for the Bristol-modified verification query, so the demand here sits in the generic national phrasings, and this page is built to answer those precisely for a Bristol reader.
Postcode areas covering Bristol
- BS — Bristol and north Somerset: 72,208 live companies
- GL — Gloucestershire: 46,396 live companies
Neighbouring post towns we also serve: Cardiff (53,910), Swindon (14,349), Cheltenham (14,802), Exeter (12,998), Bath (9,461). All figures from the Companies House Free Company Data Product, snapshot 1 August 2026.
Typical Bristol companies, and what that means for verification
Bristol's register is heavily weighted towards small and micro companies: technology and creative consultancies, contractors, and a large population of one- and two-director companies. The characteristic verification problem for that profile is not eligibility but sequencing. An existing director's deadline is the company's next confirmation statement date (GOV.UK), which many contractors have never had cause to look up. A new director must verify before appointment, and at incorporation, which catches people mid-way through setting up a second company. If your confirmation statement is close, the practical answer is to verify now and hold the code, because the filing will be rejected if any director is unverified (Companies House).
Do Bristol directors need an appointment?
Our appointment locations are Bedford and London–Stratford. From Bristol, that trip is rarely worth making for a check that takes about ten minutes on a phone, so the digital route is the default and the two-document route runs as a scheduled video appointment. The fee for a UK-resident applicant is £125, all inclusive.
Digital identity check
One accepted document, photographed on your own phone, plus a live selfie. Around ten minutes, no travel, no appointment. This is what most Bristol applicants use.
Two-document check
Two original documents examined by us, either at our Bedford or London–Stratford office or on a scheduled video appointment. Used where the digital route does not suit your documents.
Both routes meet the same Companies House identity verification standard and produce the same personal code. There is also a free Post Office route for UK residents, available after you receive the confirmation email, which takes about 15 days. If your confirmation statement is close, that timing is the thing to weigh up.
Who must verify, and by when
Everyone in scope is in scope in Bristol on exactly the same terms as anywhere else in the UK. There is no local variation, no local extension and no local exemption.
GOV.UK lists the people who must verify as a director, the equivalent of a director, which includes members, general partners and managing officers, a director of an overseas company registered in the UK, a person with significant control, and anyone registering as an Authorised Corporate Service Provider. People who file on behalf of a company, limited partnerships, corporate directors, corporate LLP members and officers of corporate PSCs will be required to verify at a later date.
Identity verification became a legal requirement on 18 November 2025. Companies House is explicit that this date is not a deadline in itself; it marks the start of a 12-month transition period that ends in November 2026, by the end of which Companies House expects to have verified 6 to 7 million individuals (Annual Report and Accounts 2025–26). Your own deadline sits inside that window and depends on your role:
- Existing directors: by the company's next confirmation statement date.
- New directors: before appointment, and at incorporation for a new company.
- Directors of overseas companies registered in the UK: by the anniversary of the UK establishment's registration.
- A PSC who is also a director: within the 14-day period starting the day after the confirmation statement date.
- A PSC who is not a director: within the first 14 days of their birth month.
Once you have verified, Companies House issues an 11 character personal code. It is personal to you and not to your company, and if you are a director of multiple companies you only need to verify once and then use the same code for every appointment.
What happens if the deadline passes
The consequences of not verifying are national and they are not administrative niceties. They apply to a Bristol director in the same way as to any other.
Companies House states that it is unlawful for a director to act as a director without completing identity verification, and that the offence arises under section 167M of the Companies Act. Three enforcement routes are available: criminal prosecution, referral to the Insolvency Service, and financial penalties. Prosecution may lead to criminal conviction, director disqualification and fines, and non-compliance can be annotated on the public register for anyone to see.
There is also an immediate, practical consequence that arrives long before any enforcement action. All directors need to verify before the company's next confirmation statement is filed, otherwise the filing will be rejected. The campaign guidance puts it more bluntly still: without verification you will not be able to make any filings for your company or start a new company. For most people that rejected filing, not the prospect of prosecution, is what makes this urgent.
How we verify you, and what it costs
Tax and Accounting Hub Ltd is a Companies House Authorised Corporate Service Provider, company number 08408126, supervised by the Association of Accounting Technicians for anti-money-laundering purposes and registered with the ICO. GOV.UK describes an ACSP as an agent, such as an accountant or solicitor, who files on behalf of others, and requires every ACSP to be supervised by a UK anti-money-laundering supervisory body. The official public list of ACSPs is published by Companies House and was last updated on 20 August 2026.
- You complete a short application, sign the engagement letter on screen and pay by card.
- You verify your identity: either a digital check on your own phone, which takes around ten minutes, or a scheduled appointment where two original documents are examined.
- We review the result against our compliance checklist and file it with Companies House as your authorised agent.
- Companies House emails you your own 11-character personal code, which you then give to every company where you hold an appointment.
Our fee for a UK-resident director, PSC or LLP member is £125, all inclusive. There is no VAT, no per-document charge and nothing added later. You can read the full process on our step-by-step guide, or start now on the application page.
Bristol verification questions
The questions we are asked most often by directors and PSCs of Bristol companies.
How many companies are registered in Bristol?
There are 58,701 live companies registered to the Bristol post town, and 72,208 across the BS postcode area, on the Companies House snapshot of 1 August 2026.
Where do I find my confirmation statement date?
It is on your company's public record at Companies House. For an existing director the verification deadline is that next confirmation statement date, so it is the first thing to check.
I am about to set up a second company in Bristol. When do I verify?
Before the company is incorporated. New directors must verify before appointment and at incorporation, so verification has to come first rather than being tidied up afterwards.
Is there an in-person option in the south west?
Our offices are in Bedford and London–Stratford. Bristol applicants who need two original documents examined are offered a scheduled video appointment rather than a journey.
What does it cost for a Bristol-based director?
£125, all inclusive, with no VAT. The overseas fee of £175 applies only if you are resident outside the UK.
Related pages
Ready to verify a Bristol director?
Most applications take about ten minutes to complete online. Bedford and London–Stratford appointments are available if you would rather be seen.
Start your application