Overview
| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Region | Europe |
| ISO 3166-1 | GB / GBR |
| Registry | Companies House |
| Last updated | 2026-05-06 |
Identifiers
Collect two identifiers from each business customer in United Kingdom and submit them as strings on the application body.| API field | Local name | Issuer |
|---|---|---|
businessInfo.taxId | Unique Taxpayer Reference (UTR) | HMRC |
businessInfo.businessEntityId | Company Registration Number (CRN) | Companies House |
Sector regulators
FCA · PRA/Bank of England · HMRC · Ofcom · PSR
Legal structures
| Local name | Abbreviation | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Public Limited Company | PLC | Share-capital company whose shares may be offered to the public; minimum allotted capital £50,000; subject to FCA Listing Rules if listed on a recognised exchange. Equivalent to a US C-Corp. |
| Private Company Limited by Shares | Ltd | The dominant SME vehicle with separate legal personality; members’ liability capped at unpaid share amounts; shares are not freely tradable to the public. Equivalent to a US LLC. |
| Limited Liability Partnership | LLP | Incorporated partnership with separate legal personality and members’ limited liability; governed by an LLP agreement; taxed as a partnership. Equivalent to a US LLP. |
| Limited Partnership | LP | At least one general partner with unlimited liability and at least one limited partner whose liability is capped at their contribution; registered at Companies House. Equivalent to a US LP. |
| General Partnership | GP | Two or more persons carrying on business in common with a view to profit; no separate legal personality in England & Wales; all partners bear unlimited liability; registered with HMRC. Equivalent to a US General Partnership. |
| Sole Trader | — | A single individual trading on their own account; no separate legal entity; registered with HMRC for Self Assessment; unlimited personal liability. Equivalent to a US Sole Proprietorship. |
| Private Company Limited by Guarantee | Ltd by guarantee | Incorporated company with no share capital; members’ liability limited to a guaranteed amount (typically £1); used by charities, clubs, and associations. Closest US equivalent: Nonprofit Corporation. |
| Community Interest Company | CIC | Limited company (by shares or guarantee) with an asset lock, requiring profits and assets to benefit the community; registered at Companies House. Closest US equivalent: Public Benefit Corporation. |
| Charitable Incorporated Organisation | CIO | Incorporated charity registered solely with the Charity Commission (England & Wales) or OSCR (Scotland), not with Companies House; members’ liability limited; no share capital. Closest US equivalent: Nonprofit Corporation (501(c)(3)). |
| Private Unlimited Company | Unltd | Incorporated company with share capital but no limit on members’ liability; rarely used; main advantage is exemption from filing accounts publicly. Closest US equivalent: C-Corp (with unlimited shareholder liability). |
| Registered Society (Co-operative or Community Benefit) | — | Incorporated body registered with the FCA under the Co-operative and Community Benefit Societies Act 2014; operated for members’ mutual benefit (co-op) or the wider community (bencom); not registered at Companies House. Closest US equivalent: Cooperative. |
| Overseas Company (UK Establishment) | — | A foreign-incorporated entity that has registered a UK establishment (branch or place of business) with Companies House under the Overseas Companies Regulations 2009; not a separate UK legal entity. Closest US equivalent: Branch/Rep Office. |
How documents combine
For each evidence area, this table shows whether the listed documents are alternatives (any one of) or a bundle (all required). The artifact-by-artifact lookup follows below.| Evidence area | Documents needed |
|---|---|
| Legal Registration | All required: Certificate of Incorporation + Confirmation Statement |
| Constitutive Documents | Articles of Association |
| Tax Registration | UTR notification letter |
| Ownership Records | Confirmation Statement |
| Governance Records | Companies House Officers Register |
| Signing Authority | Any one of: Board minute · Written Resolution · Deed-form Power of Attorney |
| Address | Any one of: Lease Agreement · Utility Bill · Bank Statement |
Documents to collect
The physical documents you’ll collect from your customer, with the evidence area each one proves. One document can prove multiple areas — for example, Brazil’s Cartão CNPJ covers both tax and business-registration proof, so it appears once with both areas listed.| Document | Proves |
|---|---|
| Certificate of Incorporation | Legal Registration |
| Confirmation Statement (CS01) | Legal Registration, Ownership Records |
| Articles of Association (+ vestigial Memorandum of Association) | Constitutive Documents |
| UTR notification letter (HMRC) | Tax Registration |
| Companies House Officers Register (via Confirmation Statement / Find & Update portal) | Governance Records |
| Board minute | Signing Authority |
| Written Resolution (private companies) | Signing Authority |
| Deed-form Power of Attorney | Signing Authority |
| Lease Agreement | Address |
| Utility Bill (≤90 days old) | Address |
| Bank Statement (≤90 days old) | Address |
| Sector-Specific License | FCA authorisation, PRA authorisation, HMRC MLR registration, Ofcom licence, ICO registration |
Collection notes
- Legal Registration: Certificate proves existence and CRN; latest CS01 confirms current officers, PSC entries, and share capital.
- Constitutive Documents: The Memorandum of Association was reduced to a subscriber list by the Companies Act 2006; the substantive constitution is in the Articles alone.
- Tax Registration: 10-digit UTR; issued by HMRC on CT registration. Collect VAT Certificate (VAT 4) separately if VAT-registered.
- Sector-Specific License: Collect whichever apply; FCA Financial Services Register is publicly searchable at register.fca.org.uk.
- Ownership Records: The Confirmation Statement (CS01) filed with Companies House includes the current share capital structure and member/shareholder details. Latest CS01 available via Companies House public search.
- Governance Records: Lists directors, company secretary (if any); publicly searchable via Companies House.
- Signing Authority: Written resolution valid for private companies. Deed execution requires 2 authorised signatories or 1 director + witness.
- Address: Conduit accepts a lease (no time limit), utility bill, or bank statement dated within 90 days as proof of address. The same document satisfies both registered-address and operating-address checks.
Person roles
When you submit a person on the application body, set theirrole to one of Conduit’s canonical BusinessPersonRole values. Use this table to map a local corporate-governance title onto the right canonical role.
| Local role | Canonical API role | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Director | CONTROLLING_PERSON | Appointed officer with day-to-day authority; min. 1 natural person required (CA 2006 s.155). |
| Designated Member (LLP) | CONTROLLING_PERSON | At least 2 required per LLPA 2000; responsible for LLP’s statutory filings with Companies House. |
| General Partner (LP) | CONTROLLING_PERSON | Manages partnership; bears unlimited liability. |
| Authorised Signatory | LEGAL_REPRESENTATIVE | Empowered by board resolution or POA to bind the company (CA 2006 s.44). |
Additional fields
Country-specific fields you’ll need to collect during onboarding, beyond the document uploads.| Field | Applies to | Reason |
|---|---|---|
PSC nature-of-control narrative | shareholder | CA 2006 s.790C + ECCTA 2023 (eff. 2025-11-18) require filings to state which of the five conditions the PSC satisfies. |
Notes
- PSC threshold is more than 25%, not ≥25%. A holder of exactly 25% does not qualify. The comparator is from CA 2006 Sch. 1A Part 1 — “more than 25 per cent of the voting rights / shares.” Filing bands (25–50%, 50–75%, 75%+) are separate from the qualifying threshold.
- No general operating licence. The UK has no equivalent to a Patente, Alvará, or Trading Licence for ordinary commercial activities. Mark Operating Permit as N/A; collect sector-specific regulatory licences via Sector-Specific License.
- ECCTA 2023 IDV is live but in transition. Individual directors and PSCs must verify identity with Companies House via GOV.UK One Login or an ACSP (mandatory from 2025-11-18). Existing directors/PSCs have until their next confirmation statement (transition window ends ~2026-11-18). Corporate directors and officers of corporate PSCs deferred to 2026–2027.
- Companies House does not issue a Certificate of Good Standing. It issues a “summary statement” certifying continuous existence. Counterparties requesting a “Good Standing” certificate should be directed to this instrument; do not request a non-existent document.
- PSR consolidation into FCA. The PSR is being abolished; functions transferring to FCA. Requires primary legislation; government will legislate “as soon as parliamentary time allows” (HMT consultation response, 2026-04-21). No transition date has been announced. For payments-sector customers, cross-check both PSR and FCA registers during transition.