Companies House has introduced several changes to the annual confirmation statement since March 2024, including new requirements for company email addresses, declarations of lawful intent and identity verification.
We’ve outlined the changes below, including the latest filing fees for 2026 and what they mean for limited company directors.
What is the confirmation statement?
The confirmation statement is a form all limited companies must file with Companies House each year.
Separate from filing financial statements, the confirmation statement is more an administrative than an accounting task.
By filing this return annually, you update the register with key information about your company’s structure.
For example: who owns it? Who controls it? Where does it trade from? Where is it registered? What type of trade is it involved in?
Confirmation statement changes
Companies House introduced three changes to the confirmation statement in 2024. Companies House made these changes as part of a phased introduction of the Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Act 2023.
While this all sounds official and rather foreboding, the changes are straightforward and nothing to fear. So let’s now take a look at those changes, along with the further requirements introduced since 2024:
Supply of an email address
The first change reflects the digital era of communication we all live in.
Since March 2024, you must provide Companies House with an email address for your limited company.
Companies House uses this to communicate with your limited company. Importantly, it is not publicly available. All new company formations since 4th March 2024, and all confirmation statements with a statement date from 5th March 2024 onwards, have required an email address to be registered.
Statement to confirm the company’s lawful intent
This second change is the most significant amongst the original changes. When filing a confirmation statement, companies must confirm that the company’s intended activities are lawful.
Increase in fee
From 1st May 2024, Companies House increased the annual fee for filing the confirmation statement to £34.
The fee increased again on 1st February 2026 and is now £50 for online filing or £110 for paper filing.
Identity verification for directors and people with significant control
A further change came into effect on 18th November 2025, introducing mandatory identity verification for company directors and people with significant control (PSCs).
Directors must now verify their identity with Companies House and provide their personal code when filing their company’s next confirmation statement. Companies House will not accept the confirmation statement until all directors have completed identity verification.
PSCs must also verify their identity, but they submit their personal codes separately, and deadlines depend on their circumstances. If you’re both a director and a PSC, you’ll need to provide your personal code for each role.
Identity verification can be completed free of charge through GOV.UK One Login, or through an Authorised Corporate Service Provider (ACSP).
You can find out more about the requirements and deadlines in the Companies House identity verification guidance.
What does this mean for you?
This depends on how you usually file your confirmation statement. Many businesses, especially larger ones, file this return themselves on the Companies House website. Smaller businesses will often enlist the help of their accountants.
What do changes to the confirmation statement mean for Integro Accounting’s clients?
At Integro Accounting, we include completing and filing the confirmation statement as part of our service; we just recharge the Companies House filing fee of £50 to your limited company.
Whilst we enjoy doing many wonderfully helpful things for you, our clients, we would never presume to know what your intentions are – lawful or otherwise! This means that with the requirement to ‘confirm lawful intent ‘, we will ask you to actively confirm this to us in writing once a year. Your accountant will of course let you know when we need this.
With the introduction of identity verification, directors will also need to ensure their identities are verified and provide their Companies House personal codes before we can file the confirmation statement on their behalf. PSCs must also meet their separate verification requirements.
If you’d like to find out more about how these changes could affect you, contact your accountant, who would be happy to talk through your situation.
