Since November 2025, every director and every person with significant control of a UK company has had to verify their identity with Companies House. The transition period ends on Wednesday 18 November 2026. After that, an unverified director or owner is committing an offence, and the company cannot file its confirmation statement. Companies House sends its warning letters to the company’s UK registered office, not to the owner in Spain, which is why so many members have never heard about it. Through our Corporate Member Vaulex Group, the chamber is making sure they hear it now.
Who it affects. When the register was read on 17 October, 831 British owners of UK companies living in Spain had not verified, across 729 companies, and 386 of those companies were already past the date Companies House had set. Spain ranks third in the world for this, behind only the UAE and the United States. The figure excludes directors who are not also shareholders, so the real number is higher. If you hold a UK company for consulting, property, pensions or a business you kept open after moving, this applies to you
Why the free route fails from Spain. The GOV.UK One Login app needs a passport chip it can read and a face match that works first time; if it cannot, it falls back on a UK credit history or a visit to a UK Post Office. Living abroad, many people fail at one of those steps and are left with no route at all. Verification through an authorised agent avoids every one of them.
How it works with Vaulex. Vaulex Group is an Authorised Corporate Service Provider with Companies House and is supervised by HMRC. You verify from your phone, anywhere in Spain: a photo of your passport (any nationality), a short live selfie, and proof of where you live. A real person reviews it and Vaulex files your verification statement with Companies House, so your personal code is issued to you for life. The standard service is £149.99 and takes about three working days; a 24-working-hour fast track is £349. The page can be read in Spanish and shows the euro figure beside each price.
What to do today. Use the free 30-second check: enter your company name or number and it tells you who at the company still has to verify and by when, straight from the live register. If you are listed, order the standard service by Thursday 12 November or the fast track by Tuesday 17 November. If you are not listed, you have nothing to do, and you can run the same check for any other company you are involved with. Members with questions can join the chamber’s live webinar on Wednesday 11 November at 13:00 CET; the registration button appears on the page as soon as the chamber sends us the link.
