Completing form ID3
Guidance for completing form ID3: certificate of identity for a private individual.
Applies to England and Wales
Evidence of identity
You must provide evidence of identity for any party (and the person lodging the application if different) who is not legally represented.
When identity is verified by someone in the authorised professions the evidence must be in form ID3 and must be completed by each individual person who is a party to the above transactions who is not legally represented.
Form ID3 can be downloaded free of charge from our website or by phoning customer support.
Both parts of form ID3 lodged in support of an application must be dated and signed no more than three months before the time of lodgement.
Completed ID3 forms are not open to public inspection and normally a person may not apply for an official copy of them. There are special provisions in the Land Registration Rules 2003 to allow inspection by specific persons, in some situations connected with court proceedings, insolvency and tax liability investigations. We hope that you will understand why evidence of identity is needed. Although this requirement may appear to be a burden we believe it is essential to help combat identity theft and fraud. Our requirements are similar to the identity checks made by other organisations, including banks.
Fraud notice
If, when there is a requirement to confirm identity or provide evidence of identity, you dishonestly provide information or make a statement that you know is, or might be, untrue or misleading, and intend by doing so to make a gain for yourself or another person, or to cause loss or the risk of loss to another person, you may commit the offence of fraud under section 1 of the Fraud Act 2006, the maximum penalty for which is 10 years’ imprisonment or an unlimited fine, or both.
When and for whom HM Land Registry will require confirmation of identity
We require confirmation of identity for the types of transactions and for the persons shown in the following table as well as the person lodging the application, if different. Please also see the exceptions mentioned below the table.
Confirmation of identity requirements
| Application | Person for whom confirmation of identity is required |
|---|---|
| Transfer of land or transfer of a mortgage (whether or not for money, also includes transfers to appoint or remove a trustee and assents by personal representatives | Transferor (seller), Transferee (buyer), any attorney acting for the seller or buyer, any personal representative |
| Lease (whether or not for money) | Landlord, Tenant, any attorney acting for the landlord or tenant |
| Surrender of a registered lease: application to close the leasehold title (includes surrenders by transfer and by operation of law) | Landlord, Tenant, any attorney acting for the landlord or tenant |
| Mortgage (charge): of registered land or of unregistered land on compulsory first registration | Lender (chargee), Borrower (chargor), any attorney acting for the lender or borrower |
| Discharge of mortgage in paper form DS1 or DS3 | Lender |
| Compulsory first registration explains when an application for first registration is compulsory) | Seller or landlord, Buyer or tenant, any attorney acting for the above |
| Voluntary first registration but only where the deeds have been lost and the applicant is not a conveyancer or a well-known corporate body who lost them themselves | Applicant for first registration as proprietor of the land, any attorney for the applicant |
| Change of name by deed poll, statutory declaration or statement of truth | Person changing their name (in their new name) |
| Change of address | Person changing their address |
Exceptions
There are some exceptions, which are set out in full in practice guide 67: evidence of identity. The main exceptions affecting applications sent by someone who is not a professional conveyancer where we do not need confirmation of identity for some or all parties are:
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a lease or a charge which is merely being noted in the register
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voluntary applications for first registration unless the title deeds have been lost or destroyed.
We also do not require confirmation of identity for certain parties who already have to send us evidence of their appointment. This includes trustees in bankruptcy, liquidators and Mental Capacity Act deputies (a full list is in practice guide 67: evidence of identity). This exemption applies both when they are parties to a deed, and when they are also sending the affected application to us themselves.
Please note though that confirmation of identity is still required for the beneficiary under an assent or the transferee under a transfer, and also for any person lodging the application (unless they are the trustee in bankruptcy etc as referred to in the above paragraph). This applies both in situations where the land is already registered and also where an application is being made for compulsory first registration. In addition to the above we also do not require confirmation of identity where the true value of the land involved in the disposal does not exceed £6,000.
Completing form ID3
Where a party to a transaction comprises more than one person, each one must complete a separate ID form and produce evidence of their identity.
The following examples help to illustrate when evidence of identity is required and for whom (where a non-conveyancer in one of the authorised professions is verifying ID).
- neighbour A sells part of his back garden to neighbour B. Neither use a conveyancer and both are private individuals. Neighbour B then lodges the application for registration.
We need separate forms ID3 from neighbour A as the transferor and neighbour B as the transferee.
- C mortgages her property to D who applies to register the mortgage. Neither use a conveyancer and both are private individuals.
We need separate forms ID3 from C as borrower and D as lender.
- E and F transfer their property by way of gift to G. H submits the application for registration on behalf of G. All are private individuals.
We will need separate forms ID3 for E and F as joint transferors, G as the transferee and H as the person lodging the application.
Which parts of the form to complete
You must complete part 1.
Part 2 must always be completed by someone in one of the authorised professions.
Verification of identity
In accordance with the direction made by the Chief Land Registrar under section 100(4) of the Land Registration Act 2002 for the purpose of confirming a person’s identity, form ID3 must always be completed where the identity has been verified by someone in one of the authorised professions below.
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Medical doctor
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Dentist
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Chartered or certified accountant
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Regulated financial adviser
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Member of Parliament
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Member of the Senedd
Other professions were previously included on form ID3. See practice guide 67: evidence of identity for further information.
Requirements
A form ID3 must be no more than 3 months old when lodged with an application for registration.
All of the following conditions must be satisfied.
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The person whose identity is to be verified and the verifier must both hold a current valid UK, Channel Islands or Isle of Man full passport.
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They must have known each other for at least one year.
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They must not be related to each other in any way.
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They must not be involved in the same transaction.
In addition:
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They must both provide a copy of the personal details page of their passport to HM Land Registry. Please note that where the verifier verifies the identity of more than one person, they must provide an equivalent number of copies of their personal details page to the number of people whose identities they have verified. A single copy for all the people is not acceptable.
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Where possible the verifier should include their professional registration number to enable appropriate checks to be made.
Further information
See also practice guide 67: evidence of identity and completing forms ID1 and ID2 for further information.
Further support required
If you require further support because of your condition or circumstances, please contact us.
Send your forms
Send the completed form(s) to our Citizen Centre, see HM Land Registry address for applications.
Last updated 5 February 2024 + show all updates
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Guidance amended as a result of amendments to form ID3 and the withdrawal of form ID4.
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Following a review of our practice, a personal representative who assents or transfers land has been removed from the exception status and must now provide evidence of identity with any such application.
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First published.