Confirming someone’s identity

How to confirm someone’s identity

For applications with a digital photo, you can confirm someone’s identity online. You do not need to sign a printed photo.

What the applicant needs to do

As the applicant, you need to:

  1. Check who can confirm your identity
  2. Contact the person before giving their details to HM Passport Office
  3. Make sure they know your address and date of birth, including the year
  4. Sign into your application to enter the person’s name and email

If you’re applying for a child, the person you ask must be able to confirm where the child was born as well as their parents’ names and years of birth.

What the person confirming an identity needs to do

As the person confirming someone’s identity, you’ll receive an email from HM Passport Office. The email includes a link and a reference to sign in online.

You’ll need to:

  1. Enter the reference from the email and the applicant’s date of birth
  2. Provide your passport details and current address
  3. Answer a few questions about how you know the applicant
  4. Confirm some of the applicant’s details
  5. Check a digital passport photo

This takes about 10 minutes.

If the applicant is a child, you’ll need to answer a few questions about how you know the person making their application. We need to confirm the person applying has parental responsibility.

If you’re not a UK or Irish passport holder you’ll need to give the applicant a colour photocopy of your passport’s photo page.