The PSC register — Persons with Significant Control — is the statutory beneficial ownership record for companies incorporated in England and Wales. It names who controls the company, describes the nature of that control, and states when it took effect. Control is the operative question in any cross-border acquisition or counterparty review. The PSC register is the primary public source for answering it.
Companies House publishes PSC data under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Redistribution with attribution is permitted. The register is free to query without registration.
What it showsPersons with significant control: full name, month and year of birth, nationality, country of residence, nature of control, date notified. Source: Companies House PSC register · verified 2026-09-10 Access conditionNo registration required. The register is publicly accessible and free of charge at find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk What it does not showUltimate beneficial owner beyond the first PSC layer; trust beneficiaries; nominee arrangements; economic interest held through contractual instruments not captured by the six statutory control categories. Coverage levelLevel A — the register names the PSC directly where one is registered. Source: Companies House · verified 2026-09-10This register is public and free of charge. What you are paying for is the removed path: registration, national identifier, language, electronic signature, declaration of legitimate interest.
The Companies Act 2006, as amended by the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Act 2015, requires every UK private company to maintain a PSC register and file it at Companies House. A person qualifies as a PSC by meeting one or more of six statutory conditions: holding more than 25% of shares, holding more than 25% of voting rights, holding the right to appoint or remove a majority of directors, having the right to exercise or actually exercising significant influence or control, or exercising those rights through a trust or firm.
The register records the PSC's full name, a partial date of birth (month and year only — day is suppressed), nationality, country of residence, the applicable control condition, and the date the entry was notified. For corporate PSCs, the register records the entity name, registered office, legal form, governing law, and the applicable control condition.
The register does not record the economic value of the interest. A person holding 26% of shares and a person holding 74% of shares both appear as PSCs; the register does not distinguish between them by quantum. Voting agreements, shareholder agreements, and side letters are not filed at Companies House and do not appear in the PSC record.
Source: Companies House PSC register · extracted 2026-09-10
The PSC register is a first-layer instrument. It records the person or entity that directly meets a statutory control condition. Where the PSC is itself a company — a holding entity, a fund, or a nominee vehicle — the register names that entity but does not trace through it.
Tracing through a corporate PSC requires a separate query against the register of the jurisdiction where that entity is incorporated. If that jurisdiction is outside the UK, the availability and depth of its beneficial ownership data depend entirely on local law. Several EU member states closed public UBO access following the CJEU judgment in joined cases C-37/20 and C-601/20. In those jurisdictions, access requires a demonstrated legitimate interest and a formal application.
The PSC register also does not capture arrangements structured to remain below the 25% threshold through fragmentation across connected parties. It does not capture control exercised through debt instruments, convertible notes, or contractual veto rights that fall outside the six statutory categories.
An extract from the PSC register establishes what is filed. It does not establish whether what is filed is accurate or complete. Companies House does not verify PSC filings; it records them.
Source: Companies House PSC register · extracted 2026-09-10
Where the PSC is a legal entity rather than an individual, Companies House records it as a Relevant Legal Entity (RLE). The RLE entry names the entity and its jurisdiction of incorporation. It does not name the natural persons who own or control the RLE.
Establishing the natural persons behind an RLE requires a separate registry query in the RLE's home jurisdiction. For UK-incorporated RLEs, a further PSC query at Companies House may resolve the chain. For foreign-incorporated RLEs, the depth of resolution depends on the source jurisdiction's disclosure regime.
An analytical extract covering a company with an RLE as its PSC will identify the RLE, retrieve its available public record, and state explicitly at which point the chain cannot be traced further and why.
Source: Companies House · extracted 2026-09-10
PSC information must be confirmed annually in the company's confirmation statement. Changes must be notified within 14 days of the change occurring. In practice, filings are not always current. A PSC who transferred their interest may remain on the register until the company files an update.
The date of the most recent confirmation statement is visible in the company's filing history. An extract prepared for due diligence purposes notes the confirmation statement date and flags any gap between that date and the date of the query.
The register also records ceased PSCs — persons who previously met a control condition and have since been removed. Ceased entries remain visible in the filing history and are included in a complete analytical extract.
Source: Companies House filing history · extracted 2026-09-10
The PSC register is the statutory record of control. It is not a record of economic reality. The following cannot be established from the PSC register alone:
The register does not show the actual percentage of shares or votes held — only whether the threshold is met. It does not show the terms of any shareholders' agreement. It does not show trust beneficiaries or settlors. It does not show the identity of the natural persons behind a foreign RLE where that jurisdiction does not publish beneficial ownership data. It does not show whether a filed PSC entry is accurate; Companies House records filings, it does not verify them.
Where the PSC is a corporate entity, the chain of control can be traced only as far as the disclosure regime of the RLE's home jurisdiction permits. For jurisdictions where public UBO access is restricted — including several EU member states following the 2022 CJEU ruling — the chain terminates at the RLE level unless access through a legitimate interest procedure is available and pursued.
An extract prepared under this service states explicitly where the chain terminates and on what legal basis. The ceiling of what the sources allow is stated before payment.
| Tier | Price | What is included | What is NOT included |
|---|---|---|---|
| Signal | €440 | Current PSC register extract; identification of all active PSC entries; nature of control for each entry; confirmation statement date; flag on any RLE PSC with jurisdiction noted | Tracing through RLE to natural persons; ceased PSC history; cross-jurisdictional chain resolution; shareholders' agreement review |
| Standard | €890 | Everything in Signal; ceased PSC history; RLE identification with available public record in home jurisdiction; gap analysis between confirmation statement date and query date; written summary of control chain and its limits | Jurisdictions where public UBO access requires a legitimate interest application; shareholders' agreement or side letter review; legal qualification of findings |
| Extended | €1800 | Everything in Standard; multi-layer chain tracing across up to three jurisdictions; legitimate interest access procedure where available; cross-reference against Companies House filing history for consistency; written analytical memorandum identifying control chain, gaps, and source limitations | Jurisdictions where beneficial ownership data is not publicly available and no legitimate interest procedure exists; legal advice on the implications of findings; court record review |
Does the PSC register cover all UK companies? The obligation applies to UK private limited companies, public limited companies, and limited liability partnerships. Scottish limited partnerships have a separate disclosure regime. Overseas companies registered at Companies House are not subject to the PSC regime; their home jurisdiction rules apply.
What if no PSC is listed? A company may file a statement that it has no registrable PSC — for example, because no individual meets any of the six control conditions and no RLE qualifies. This is a valid filing. It does not mean the company has no beneficial owner; it means no person meets the statutory threshold as defined. An extract will record the statement and note its implications.
Is the PSC register the same as the UBO register required under the EU Anti-Money Laundering Directives? The PSC regime predates the EU AML framework and is distinct from it. The UK implemented its own beneficial ownership disclosure requirements through the Companies Act. Following Brexit, the UK regime operates independently. The PSC register is the UK's primary public beneficial ownership record.
Can a PSC entry be suppressed? A PSC may apply to Companies House to suppress their residential address and, in limited circumstances, their name, where there is a credible risk of violence or intimidation. Suppressed entries are noted in the register as suppressed; their existence is disclosed even where the details are withheld. An extract will record any suppression and identify the applicable procedure for accessing the withheld information through the relevant authority.
How current is the data in an extract? An extract reflects the state of the register at the date of retrieval. The date of retrieval is recorded on the extract. The date of the most recent confirmation statement is noted separately. Any gap between the two dates is flagged.
Sources:
Companies House PSC register — find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk — extracted 2026-09-10
Companies House filing history — find-and-update.company-information.service.gov.uk — extracted 2026-09-10
Companies Act 2006 (as amended by the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Act 2015) — legislation.gov.uk — verified 2026-09-10
The Register of People with Significant Control Regulations 2016 (SI 2016/339) — legislation.gov.uk — verified 2026-09-10
Disclaimer: This report is a factual compilation from official registers and public sources. It is provided for informational purposes only, does not constitute legal advice, and contains no legal qualification of the facts established. VLO Law Firm assumes no liability for actions taken or not taken based on this material. For advice regarding your particular situation, please contact info@vlolawfirm.com.
Author: James Whitfield — Partner, UK & Common Law, VLO Law Firm