From today anyone who becomes a company director or person with significant control (PSC) will need to verify their identity with Companies House.

Identity verification is being phased in over 12 months to make things easier for companies and business owners, Companies House said.

It said identity verification will make it harder for people to set up companies or appoint directors using fake or stolen identities. It will make it easier to expose disqualified directors, and link multiple directorships to one person, helping to identify criminal networks.

Companies House said: “Making information on the company register more reliable is good news for business, users of the register and efforts to tackle economic crime.”

It said identity verification will also help it take enforcement action as it will know who is really behind a company.

Andy King, Companies House chief executive, said: “We're determined to help create an environment where honest businesses can thrive. We want them to know that when they're doing business with another company, the information we hold about them is accurate and trustworthy. We also we want to prevent people starting and running companies for criminal purposes.”

He said more than 1.5m individuals have already verified their identity since Companies House launched its identity verification service on a voluntary basis in April.

There are two ways for individuals to verify their identity:

• directly with Companies House through GOV.UK One Login
• through an Authorised Corporate Service Provider (ACSP)

Identity verification through GOV.UK One Login is free and can be completed in minutes using existing forms of ID, such as passports and driving licences, or by answering security questions.

In most cases, individuals will only need to verify their identity once, Companies House said. Once they have successfully verified their identity they will receive a personal code from Companies House.

Directors and PSCs will need to provide a statement with their personal code confirming they have successfully verified their identity for each company role they hold. Statements for existing directors must be submitted with the company's confirmation statement.

Not complying with identity verification requirements on time is an offence.