PSC01: registering a person with significant control

Who needs it

• Companies that gain a new individual PSC after incorporation, for example after a share sale or a new share issue.
• PSCs at incorporation are given on the registration itself.

What you need before you start

• The PSC's name, date of birth, nationality and country of residence.
• A service address and their home address, which isn't published.
• The date they became a PSC and the date they confirmed their details.
• Every nature of control that applies, with the share and voting bands: over a quarter up to half, more than half but under three quarters, or three quarters or more.

How to file PSC01

1. 1Work out who meets a PSC condition. Check the register of members, the articles and any shareholder agreements.
2. 2Confirm their details with them before you send anything to Companies House.
3. 3File online or on the PSC01 paper form, printed full size on white A4.
4. 4Do it within 14 days of confirming the change.
5. 5Ask the PSC to verify their identity and provide their personal code through Companies House's PSC verification service, within their 14-day window.

Who is a PSC

Companies House says a PSC, sometimes called a beneficial owner, is usually anyone who has more than a quarter of the shares or voting rights, can appoint or remove a majority of the directors, or can influence or control the company or a trust. A company can have more than one.

Trusts and firms without legal personality bring extra rules. Companies House points to its full statutory guidance for those cases.

Identity verification for PSCs

Every PSC must verify their identity and give Companies House their personal code, using the 'Provide identity verification details for a PSC' service. Someone who became a PSC after 18 November 2025 can do it when first added to the register or within 14 days.

A PSC who was already registered before then and isn't a director has a 14-day window starting on the first day of their birth month. A PSC who is also a director has a window starting the day after the company's confirmation statement date. You can check the dates on the register.

If you can't get the information

A company must try to identify and contact anyone who could be a PSC. Someone who doesn't respond to a notice within one calendar month, or gives false information, commits a criminal offence. Companies can apply restrictions to their shares, but Companies House calls that a significant step.

Common mistakes

• Leaving the PSC information blank. If there's no PSC, the company must file a statement saying so and why.
• Picking the wrong share band. The bands are fixed, and the nature of control has to match the register of members.
• Assuming the PSC01 completes identity verification. The PSC provides their personal code separately.
• Forgetting that a director who is also a PSC gives their code for each role separately.