What Is a Person with Significant Control (PSC)?
What is a PSC? In UK company law, PSC stands for Person with Significant Control. A PSC is an individual who owns or controls a company in a way that meets one or more of the statutory PSC conditions, such as holding more than 25% of its shares or voting rights.
UK companies generally need to identify their PSCs, provide the required information to Companies House and keep that information accurate. A person can also qualify without owning more than 25% of the shares if they have other rights or exercise significant influence or control over the company.
Explains who qualifies as a Person with Significant Control (PSC) and what information must be recorded and submitted.
Failure to identify and maintain an accurate PSC Register can result in compliance breaches and potential penalties under UK company law.
PSC stands for Person with Significant Control. It is a legal term used primarily in the United Kingdom under company law. A PSC is someone who holds significant influence or control over a company. Companies in the UK are required to identify and register their PSCs with Companies House to ensure transparency about who owns and controls companies.
PSC Meaning: What Does PSC Stand For?
PSC means Person with Significant Control. The term is used by Companies House to identify individuals who ultimately own or exercise significant control over a UK company.
A PSC does not have to be a director. Likewise, being a director does not automatically make someone a PSC. Whether an individual qualifies depends on ownership, voting rights, appointment rights or the level of influence or control they have over the company.
Who Qualifies as a PSC?
An individual is generally a PSC if they meet at least one of the following conditions in relation to the company:
| PSC condition | What it means |
|---|
| Shares | They directly or indirectly hold more than 25% of the company’s shares. |
| Voting rights | They directly or indirectly hold more than 25% of the company’s voting rights. |
| Directors | They directly or indirectly have the right to appoint or remove a majority of the board of directors. |
| Significant influence or control | They otherwise have the right to exercise, or actually exercise, significant influence or control over the company. |
| Trust or firm | They exercise significant influence or control over a trust or firm that itself meets the relevant control conditions in relation to the company. |
A person can be classified as a PSC if they meet one or more of the following criteria:
- Holding more than 25% of shares in the company.
- Holding more than 25% of voting rights in the company.
- Having the right to appoint or remove the majority of the board of directors.
- Exercising significant influence or control over the company.
- Having control over a trust or firm that meets any of the above conditions.
This register of PSCs helps combat issues like money laundering and tax evasion, ensuring there is transparency in company ownership and control.
What Is a PSC in a Limited Company?
A PSC in a limited company is an individual who ultimately owns or controls the company by satisfying one or more of the PSC conditions. A company can have one PSC, several PSCs or, in some circumstances, no individual who meets the conditions.
For example, an individual holding 40% of the shares in a straightforward limited company would normally satisfy the share ownership condition because their holding exceeds 25%. Someone with only a small shareholding could still potentially qualify if they otherwise exercise significant influence or control.
PSC Register Requirements
Every UK company (unless exempt) is required to maintain a PSC Register and submit it to Companies House. This register must be kept up-to-date and include information on all PSCs. The process ensures transparency in company ownership and helps regulators, and the public, understand who controls UK companies.
PSC Identity Verification with Companies House
Identity verification is now a legal requirement for people with significant control. After verifying their identity, a PSC receives a Companies House personal code that is used to connect their verified identity with the Companies House record.
Each PSC has a 14-day period in which the required personal code and identity verification statement must be provided. The timing of that period depends on whether the person was already registered as a PSC before 18 November 2025 and whether they are also a director of the company.
If someone becomes a PSC after 18 November 2025, they can provide their personal code when they are first added to the Companies House register or within 14 days of being added.
A person who is both a director and a PSC must provide their personal code separately for each role using the appropriate Companies House process.
Information Required for the PSC Register
For each person or legal entity classified as a PSC, the following details must be recorded:
- Full name
- Date of birth
- Nationality
- Country of residence
- Service address (this can be different from their residential address)
- Residential address (this is not made public)
- The date they became a PSC
- Which of the PSC conditions they meet (e.g., holding over 25% of shares)
- Details of any significant influence or control they have over the company
What If a Company Has No PSC?
A UK company should not simply leave its PSC information blank because no individual appears to meet the conditions. If the company has no PSC, it must provide the appropriate statement to Companies House explaining that position.
The company must also take reasonable steps to identify anyone who may qualify as a PSC and keep its Companies House information accurate when ownership or control changes.
Real-World Application
For example, if a shareholder acquires more than 25% of the shares in a limited company, the company must update its PSC Register and notify Companies House. This applies even if the company is owner-managed or family-run.
Compliance Risk
Failure to maintain an accurate and up-to-date PSC Register or to submit the required information to Companies House can result in compliance breaches. Directors are responsible for ensuring the register is maintained correctly.
What Is a PSC and What It Means for Contractors and Tax Compliance in London
A Personal Service Company (PSC) can offer flexibility and tax planning advantages, but it also brings specific compliance responsibilities, particularly under IR35 and off-payroll working rules. Cigma Accounting, based in Farringdon in London, supports contractors and directors in structuring and managing their PSC correctly, with practical guidance delivered through experienced accounting services London focused on contractor compliance.
Contractors operating around Bank and Liverpool Street often need clarity on dividend planning, payroll obligations, and IR35 exposure before trading through a PSC. With physical offices across London, Cigma Accounting provides measured advice from a knowledgeable tax accountant London to ensure your company structure remains compliant and commercially effective.
CASE STUDY: Identifying a Person with Significant Control (PSC) After a Shareholding Change
James, a company director, visited our Fulham office after the ownership structure of his limited company changed. A new investor had acquired 30% of the company’s shares, and James wanted to understand whether this made the investor a Person with Significant Control (PSC) and what needed to be reported to Companies House.
We explained that PSC status is not determined by whether someone is a director. Instead, the statutory conditions look at ownership and control. Because the investor now held more than 25% of the company’s shares, they would generally satisfy one of the PSC conditions.
The company therefore needed to ensure the appropriate PSC information was recorded and supplied to Companies House. We also discussed the newer Companies House identity verification requirements, including the need for PSCs to provide the required personal code and verification statement within the applicable timeframe.
James initially assumed that only majority shareholders needed to appear as PSCs. The review helped clarify that the threshold is more than 25%, and that voting rights, rights to appoint or remove a majority of directors, or significant influence and control can also establish PSC status.
James left with a clearer understanding of how to identify a PSC and why changes in company ownership should trigger a review of the company’s Companies House information.
