How to check a firm or individual is authorised

Find out when you should use the Financial Services Register or FCA Firm Checker, what it means if you're using an appointed representative, and what to do if a firm is unauthorised.

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A man smiles as he scrolls on his iPad

A man smiles as he scrolls on his iPad

A man smiles as he scrolls on his iPad

First published: 20/03/2023 Last updated: 23/04/2025 See all updates

In the UK, almost all firms that provide financial services must be authorised or registered by us.

Being authorised means that firms must meet certain standards and have our permission to provide certain products and services.

Being registered means that firms must meet certain requirements, but they don’t need to have our permission to provide products and services.

Individuals who work at financial firms will sometimes need to be approved by a firm or certified by us to carry out financial activities as well.

How to check a firm or individual

There are different ways to check what firms and individuals can and can’t do.  

Not sure which service to use? Answer a few questions to find the information you need. 

Are you looking to check a firm or an individual?


  • Use the Financial Services Register to:

    • Find information on individuals working in financial services.
    • Check the roles that individuals can perform now and have performed in the past.  
    • Find out where an individual previously worked.

    FCA employees are not listed on our FS Register (it's a record of the firms and individuals we authorise or register).

    Search the FS Register[1]

What do you want to check?


  • If you’re looking to buy a financial product or service, you can use the Firm Checker to make sure the firm is authorised and has our permission to provide the services you’re looking for.

    Search the Firm Checker[2]


  • If you're looking to check if a firm was authorised when you first started dealing with them, use the FS Register[1].

    If you’re looking to buy a new financial product or service, use our Firm Checker[2] to make sure the firm is authorised and has our permission to provide the services you’re looking for.


  • Use the Financial Services Register to find out whether a firm was previously authorised.

    Search the FS Register[3]

FCA Firm Checker Financial Service Register

Using authorised firms

Using an authorised firm, with the correct permissions, will greatly reduce the risk of harm. It won’t remove all risk.

If you deal with a firm that isn’t authorised, or that doesn’t have permission for the activities you need, you won’t have access to the Financial Ombudsman Service[-6] if you want to complain.

You also won’t be protected by the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS)[-5] if the firm goes out of business. This means that it’s unlikely you’d get your money back.

What to do if a firm is unauthorised

Unfortunately, there are firms that work without our authorisation. This is against the law.

If we’ve published a warning about an unauthorised firm, this will appear on the FS Register and the Firm Checker when you search for the firm.

Some unauthorised firms might appear as clone firms. A clone firm[-4] is a copy of a genuine, authorised firm. As part of a clone firm scam, fraudsters pretend to work for the authorised firm to con you.

For a full list of the firms we’ve published warnings about, you can search our Warning List[-3]. 

Find out more about how to protect yourself from scams[-2].

No longer authorised or revoked firms

On the FS Register, if you see a firm that's 'No longer authorised' or 'Revoked' it means that the firm's authorisation has been cancelled and you should avoid dealing with it.

These firms won’t appear on the Firm Checker unless they get authorised again.

What it means if a firm is no longer authorised or revoked

On the FS Register, when a firm shows as 'No longer authorised' or 'Revoked' it can no longer carry out any regulated financial activities.

Firms can apply to voluntarily cancel their authorisation, for example, if they’re no longer carrying out any regulated activities. These firms appear on the FS register as 'No longer authorised'.

However, some firms are cancelled following enforcement action. These firms appear on the FS Register as 'Revoked'.

Some revoked firms may apply to have their authorisation reinstated (by applying for an annulment). But even if a firm does apply for an annulment, you should still avoid dealing with it unless its application is successful. Then its status on the FS Register and the Firm Checker will show as 'Authorised' again.

You can check 'Disciplinary and regulatory action' on the firm’s FS Register[9] page to find out why its authorisation was revoked.

Products and services we do and don't regulate

Financial firms offer a wide range of products and services, some of which we regulate, and some of which we don't.  

Firms we authorise can offer both regulated and unregulated products and services. But we have more limited powers over unregulated products and services.  

Below we’ve listed a few common types of financial products and services which we do and don’t regulate. 

Learn more about financial services including mortgages, borrowing money, insurance and bank accounts by visiting MoneyHelper[-5].

Appointed representatives

You may notice that some firms on the FS Register and the Firm Checker are listed as appointed representatives (ARs). This means they’re carrying out activities on behalf of another firm, known as their principal.

ARs can have more than one principal. The principal agrees what activities the AR can do and is responsible for that business.  

It’s important you check with the principal if you have concerns about an AR or the products and services it can offer. If an AR has gone beyond the activities the principal has allowed, you may not be protected by the Financial Ombudsman or the FSCS if something goes wrong.  

You can find contact details for ARs and principals on the FS Register and the Firm Checker. You can ask the principal to confirm what activities the AR has permission for and how you'd be protected if something went wrong.

: Information changed Firm Checker information added.
: Information added on products and services we do and don't regulate.
: Information added Check protections with Financial Ombudsman and FSCS.
: Information added No longer authorised or revoked firms.

More information

Check our Warning List of unauthorised firms[13]
Report a scam to us[-1]
Protect yourself from scams[14]

Source URL: https://www.fca.org.uk/consumers/how-check-firm-individual-authorised

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