Get EDGAR access codes on Form ID

A company without a CIK and access codes cannot file anything. Form ID on the SEC dashboard issues them; what to have ready, the steps and the turnaround.

Where: Settings › EDGAR › Codes

Ask AI about this article ChatGPTClaudePerplexity

Why nothing can be filed yet

You need EDGAR access codes before anything can be filed.

Form ID, filed on the SEC's EDGAR Filer Management dashboard, gives the company its CIK and access codes. Until SEC staff grants it, the company has no CIK, no CCC and no EDGAR account for TakePublic to transmit under.

  • SEC staff review takes about four business days on average; questions or corrections add to it.
  • Form ID is filed online on the dashboard; paper applications are not accepted.
  • An insider getting their own access for Forms 3, 4 and 5 applies as an individual, with fewer parts: Getting your EDGAR access to file Forms 3, 4 and 5 is written for them to read.

What you need

  • Two account administrators, each with a Login.gov account (EDGAR Next requires at least two).
  • The company's legal name as chartered, address, state of incorporation and EIN.
  • A billing contact for SEC filing fees and account statements.
  • An authorized officer to sign: CEO, CFO, corporate secretary, treasurer or a director.
  • A notary for the signed Form ID (the authenticating document), saved as a PDF.

Steps on the SEC dashboard

  1. Sign in to EDGAR Filer Management with Login.gov (weekdays 6 a.m. to 10 p.m. ET).
  2. Open Apply for EDGAR Access and choose New EDGAR account.
  3. Complete Parts 1 to 5: applicant, company, account administrators, billing contact, signer.
  4. Save and print Form ID; the authorized officer signs it before a notary.
  5. Upload the notarized PDF in Part 6 and submit; note the accession number EDGAR emails.
  6. When SEC staff grants the application, EDGAR emails the account administrators the CIK and CCC.
Note

The notary must not be one of the account administrators. Outside the U.S., without access to a U.S. notary public, the SEC accepts the foreign local equivalent of a notary public, or a remote online notary recognized by the law of any U.S. state or territory or the District of Columbia.

When the codes arrive

  • The CIK identifies the company on EDGAR; the CCC authorizes filings under it.
  • Enter both in Settings › EDGAR and run the test submission before the first real filing.
  • Then delegate filing authority to TakePublic on the same dashboard so it can transmit for the company.
Note

In TakePublic, choose Codes received on the EDGAR page to open the codes step. The same application restores access after a deactivated account (a missed annual confirmation): the CIK is kept, users and delegations are rebuilt.

Official sources

SEC: Prepare and Submit My Form ID Applicationsec.gov ↗EDGAR Filer Manual, Volume I (section 3, Apply for EDGAR Access)sec.gov ↗

Was this helpful?

Up next

EDGAR codes

Why TakePublic needs the company's CIK and CCC before anything can be transmitted, who holds the CCC, how it is stored, and where to enter and test it in Settings.

Related content

EDGAR codeshelp →Delegate to TakePublic in EDGAR Nexthelp →Annual EDGAR account confirmationhelp →Getting your EDGAR access to file Forms 3, 4 and 5help →
Support

Still need help?

Sign in and open the Help widget in the lower right corner to message the team. Replies land in the app and by email.

Sign in and message us How support works

TakePublic is a technology platform, not a law firm, broker-dealer, or auditor. Forms 3, 4 and 5 prepared in TakePublic file only after the reviewer the company designates, such as its securities counsel, signs off; any other filing prepared in TakePublic files only after a licensed securities attorney signs off.