You file a confirmation statement on Companies House WebFiling. It takes about ten minutes — once you can actually get in.
Two things stop most people. You need the company authentication code, which arrives by post and can take up to 10 working days. And Companies House will not accept the statement until every director has verified their identity. Neither can be fixed on the day the filing is due, so start with both.
Here is the whole process, in the order you have to do it.
Before you start: the two blockers
The company authentication code
The authentication code is a 6-digit alphanumeric code issued by Companies House to the company. It is the electronic equivalent of an officer’s signature, and you cannot file online without it.
- Request it by creating an account or signing in to Companies House WebFiling.
- It is posted to the company’s registered office. Companies House says it can take up to 10 working days to arrive, longer during busy periods.
- If you cannot access the registered office address, you can ask for it to be sent to your home address instead.
- Companies House cannot email it to you or read it out over the phone.
- Your Government Gateway account does not work here. Companies House and HMRC use separate systems.
The authentication code belongs to the company. It is not the same as your Companies House personal code, which belongs to you as an individual and comes from identity verification. You will need both.
Identity verification
Identity verification became a legal requirement on 18 November 2025. For a sitting director, the deadline that actually bites is the company’s next confirmation statement.
Each director gets a Companies House personal code when they verify, either through the ‘Verify your identity for Companies House’ service using GOV.UK One Login, or through an Authorised Corporate Service Provider such as an accountant or solicitor. On the statement you enter the personal code for every director and tick a statement confirming each has verified.
Companies House will not accept your confirmation statement until all directors have verified their identity. If your co-director has not got round to it, your filing is blocked — not delayed, blocked. Collect the codes weeks before the deadline, not during the 14-day window.
Directors of more than one company provide their code separately for each company.
Step 1: check what the register already says
Open the company’s record on the Companies House register and read it properly. You are about to make a statutory declaration that the information held is correct, so anything wrong needs fixing first.
Step 2: file the separate changes BEFORE the statement
This is where filings stall. Some changes cannot be made on the confirmation statement at all — they need their own filing, submitted before or at the same time.
| Change | How it goes in |
|---|---|
| Directors and company secretary | Separate filing, first |
| People with significant control (PSCs) | Separate filing, first |
| Registered office address | Separate filing, first |
| Registered email address | Separate filing, first (or on the statement if you have never given one) |
| SIC codes | On the confirmation statement |
| Statement of capital | On the confirmation statement |
| Trading status of shares | On the confirmation statement |
| Exemption from providing PSC information | On the confirmation statement |
| Shareholder information | On the confirmation statement |
The registered email address is the exception that catches people out. If the company has never supplied one, you must provide it on the confirmation statement. If you have already registered one and want to change it, that is a separate filing (form EM01).
Step 3: file the statement
Sign in to WebFiling with your company number, password and authentication code, and select the confirmation statement.
- Confirmation date. The date the statement covers. It must be no later than the last day of the review period (Companies Act 2006, s853A(4)), and the statement must be delivered within 14 days of the end of the review period (s853A(1)). Note where the 14 days run from: the end of the review period, not the confirmation date you choose. Dating the statement early — which is often sensible — does not start the clock early. You can check the due date on the company’s public record.
- Additional information. Update SIC codes, statement of capital, trading status of shares, PSC exemption and shareholder information here — but only where something has changed.
- Director identity verification. Enter each director’s Companies House personal code and tick the confirmation.
- Lawful purpose statement. Tick to confirm the company’s intended future activities are lawful. Mandatory since March 2024; the filing will not submit without it.
- Authenticate and pay. £50 online or by software, payable once per 12-month payment period.
The paper equivalent is form CS01 (currently version 7.0, February 2026), and it costs £110.
SIC codes
Your Standard Industrial Classification code says what the company does. Companies House uses a condensed version of the ONS list — using a code that is not on the Companies House list is a common reason for rejection.
You can give up to four SIC codes. There is one for every situation, including companies doing nothing at all: 99999 is Dormant Company and 74990 is Non-trading company. You still have to supply one.
Statement of capital
Only complete this if your share capital or the rights attached to it have changed since the last statement of capital was delivered. Companies without share capital skip it entirely.
Where it applies, you give — for each currency and each class of share — the number of shares, the aggregate nominal value, and the total aggregate amount unpaid including any share premium. You then give the prescribed particulars of the rights attached to each class: voting rights, rights to participate in a distribution of dividends, rights to participate in a distribution of capital including on winding up, and whether the shares are redeemable.
Alphabet share structures are the usual source of error. If A and B ordinary shares carry different dividend rights, they are different classes and need separate tables.
After you file
Companies House processes online filings quickly and the statement appears on the public record. If it is rejected, the review period does not pause while you fix it — so file with days to spare, not hours.
Filing early is a feature, not a mistake. You do not have to wait for the review period to end. File early and you choose a new confirmation statement date, the next review period starts the day after it, and within the same 12-month payment period it costs nothing extra. That makes an early statement a legitimate way to record a share issue or a SIC code change mid-year.
Frequently asked questions
How do I get a company authentication code?
Create an account or sign in to Companies House WebFiling and request one. It is posted to the company’s registered office and can take up to 10 working days to arrive. Companies House cannot email it or give it out over the phone, and you can ask for it to go to your home address if you cannot access the registered office.
Can I file a confirmation statement without verifying my identity?
No. Companies House will not accept the confirmation statement until all of the company’s directors have verified their identity and you have provided a Companies House personal code for each of them.
What is the difference between the authentication code and the personal code?
The authentication code is a 6-digit code issued to the company and used to authorise its online filings. The Companies House personal code is issued to you as an individual when you verify your identity, and it stays with you across every company you are involved in. You need both to file a confirmation statement.
Do I have to update the registered office on the confirmation statement?
No — you must tell Companies House about changes to the registered office, directors, company secretary and PSCs separately, before or at the same time as the confirmation statement. SIC codes, the statement of capital, trading status of shares, PSC exemption and shareholder information go on the statement itself.
How many SIC codes can I give?
Up to four. They must come from the condensed SIC code list Companies House publishes — using a code from the full ONS list that is not on it may get your filing rejected. Dormant companies use 99999 and non-trading companies use 74990.
Getting it filed
The filing itself is short. The preparation is not: a posted code, a personal code from every director, and any officer or PSC changes sequenced ahead of the statement rather than after it.
SmartFiling handles Companies House filings on a fixed fee, including confirmation statements, the separate changes that have to go in first, and the identity verification details that now travel with them. Every filing is reviewed and signed off by an ICAEW Chartered Accountant, and it is all done online.
