What is Know Your Customer (KYC)?
If you have built an A2P communications solution, you will be familiar with Know Your Customer (KYC) data. Originating from the banking industry, KYC is essentially customer information that is required to identify and verify an individual or business is who they say they are and commonly consists of name, address, and date of birth for Individuals and company name, registered address, business verification documents, etc for businesses. Over the past decade, carriers and regulators around the world have been working hard to create a more trusted and verified messaging and voice ecosystem for businesses to engage with consumers to protect consumers from spam, fraud, and bad actors.
The first step the global communications industry is taking to protect consumers is requiring businesses and organizations to submit their KYC information and become verified by the local authorities before they can begin texting or calling their customers. Currently, not all countries require KYC information, but as the communications industry evolves it is becoming more common.
KYC Requirements in the United Kingdom
Given the rise in scam and fraud over the last few years, the UK regulator issued updated Know Your Customer (KYC) guidelines.
These new requirements will be put in place to protect consumers from fraud, spam, and bad actors by requiring businesses to submit and verify their businesses.
Here are the timelines to note:
- Starting May 27, 2024 all new Long Codes purchases will require an approved Regulatory Compliance (RC) bundle before buying.
- Starting July 30, 2024 SMS Sent from International Long Codes to the UK Will Be Blocked.
- Starting January 1, 2025 all new and existing UK long codes must be connected to an approved UK RC bundle to be able to send messages or make voice calls.
This regulation is only applicable for the UK Long Codes which include local, national, mobile, and toll-free phone numbers.
What KYC information will be required for businesses in the UK?
Individual: Local or National
| Information Required | Documentation Required | Acceptable Documentation One of the following |
| Name | Proof of Identity |
|
| UK Address Must be a valid United Kingdom address. | Proof Of Address |
|
UK Emergency Address
| No documentation required | |
| Date of Birth | No documentation required | |
| Phone Number This must be a valid mobile number only where the customer can be reached. This cannot be a number which you've acquired from a CPaaS provider. | No documentation required | |
| No documentation required | ||
| Comments (optional) | No documentation required |
Individual: Mobile or Toll Free
| Information Required | Documentation Required | Acceptable Documentation One of the following |
| Name | Proof Of Identity |
|
Address | No documentation Required | |
Emergency Address | No documentation Required | |
Date of Birth | No documentation required | |
Phone Number | No documentation required | |
| No documentation required | ||
Comments (optional) | No documentation required |
Business: Local or National
| Information Required | Required Documentation | Acceptable Documentation |
| Business Name | Proof of Identity |
|
Registration Authority
|
Proof of Identity (Documentation is required for businesses not using a UK Companies House Registration Number)
|
|
| Business Registration Number | Proof of Identity(Documentation is required for businesses not using a UK Companies House Registration Number) |
|
| Website Address | No documentation required | |
| UK Business Address Must be a valid United Kingdom address | No documentation required | |
UK Emergency Address (If different from UK Business address) Must be a valid United Kingdom address | No documentation required | |
| Authorized Representative's* Name This must be a valid mobile number only where the customer can be reached. This cannot be a number which you've acquired from a CPaaS provider. | No documentation required | |
| Authorized Representative's Work Email | No documentation required | |
Business Classification | No documentation required | |
| If you are an Independent Software Vendor (ISV), will you assign the GHL phone number(s) to your end customers? (Yes/No) | No documentation required | |
| Comments (optional) | No documentation required |
*Authorized representative should be a senior person in the company who is responsible for Phone Numbers.
Business: Mobile or Toll Free
| Information Required | Required Documentation | Acceptable Documentation |
| Business Name |
|
|
Registration Authority | Proof of Identity (Documentation is required for businesses not using a UK Companies House Registration Number) |
|
| Business Registration Number | Proof of Identity (Documentation is required for businesses not using a UK Companies House Registration Number) |
|
| Website address | No documentation required | |
| Business Address Must be a valid address. May be anywhere in the world | No documentation required | |
| Emergency Address (if different from business address) May be a valid address. May be anywhere in the world | No documentation required | |
| Authorized Representative's* Name | No documentation required | |
| Authorized Representative Phone Number This must be a valid mobile number only where the customer can be reached. This cannot be a number which you've acquired from a CPaaS provider. | No documentation required | |
| Authorized Representative's Work Email | No documentation required | |
Business Classification:
| No documentation required | |
| If you are an Independent Software Vendor (ISV), will you assign the GHL phone number(s) to your end customer(s)? (Yes/No) | No documentation required | |
Comments (optional) |
*Authorized representative should be a senior manager in the company who is responsible for phone numbers.
What should you do if you have an unverified UK number?
Individual: Local or National
Starting January 1, 2025, all UK numbers must be linked to a verified bundle to continue using messaging services. This requirement ensures compliance with UK Know Your Customer (KYC) regulations.
To indicate whether a UK number is KYC-compliant, the following badges have been introduced:
UK Bundle Required: Action is needed, you need to create a UK Bundle and link it to the Phone Number.
UK KYC Verified: No action needed, the number is all verified and good to be used.
What do you need to do if your number is marked as "UK Bundle Required"?
To ensure uninterrupted messaging services, please follow the steps below to create a verified regulatory bundle and link it to your UK numbers:
- Create a Regulatory Bundle:
Go to Location Settings -> Phone Numbers Tab.
Navigate to the "Regulatory Bundle/Address" section.
Create a regulatory bundle based on the number type you want to link in the UK, and submit it for approval.
- Link the Approved Bundle:
Once your regulatory bundle is created and approved, proceed to the "Manage Numbers" tab.
Click on the ellipses (three dots) on the far right of any number marked as "UK Bundle Required."
When hovered over, a list of all approved UK bundles will be displayed.
Select the appropriate bundle for that number type.
Once linked, your UK number will be verified and ready for continued use with messaging services.
Need Help?
If you encounter any issues with these processes, please reach out to us at [email protected] with the subject line "UK KYC - Help Needed."
What if you don’t take action?
If you don’t complete the registration, all SMS messages sent to the UK from unregistered UK long codes will be blocked starting January 1, 2025.
Frequently Asked Questions:
1: Will there be any fees for registering my UK long codes?
No, there is no fees to register UK long codes
2: I am an individual customer and I don’t have the required identity or address document, what do I do?
Unfortunately, you will not be able to use GHL’s UK long codes without proper documentation
3: I am a business customer and I don’t have the company documents, what do I do?
If your business is registered in the UK house register, then you don’t need to upload your documentation, just provide the information which we will verify. If you are not registered in the UK then please reach out to us.
4:What do you mean by emergency address?
Physical address of the actual user of the GHL Phone Number where emergency services can send help in case of an emergency
5:My business is not registered in the UK, which long codes am I eligible to use?
You should use UK Mobile or UK Toll Free numbers
6:My business is not registered, what do i do?
We encourage you to register your business.
7:I have multiple RC bundles and many numbers, what logic should I use to assign phone numbers to RC bundles?
You should not have duplicate RC bundles, each RC bundle should have unique details. Assign the RC bundles to the Phone number that align with the bundle details. Ex: a phone number used from the London office, so the appropriate RC bundle should be assigned.
8:What happens to my messaging or voice solutions if I do not submit my KYC information?
Unfortunately GHL customers will not be able to buy new UK Longcodes without an approved UK RC bundle after May 27, 2024,. Existing numbers purchased before 27 May which do not have a KYC bundle by 30th September will have all traffic blocked.
9:Are the Ofcom regulatory guidelines open to the public?
Absolutely, Ofcom released the guidelines to the public on November 15, 2022. You can access them by clicking on this link.