To maintain the integrity of our learning community, all instructors must verify their identity before they can publish a course on the marketplace.
If you have not yet verified your identity with Udemy, you will be prompted to complete instructor verification when you're ready to submit a new course for review. When your first course has been uploaded and is ready to be published, Udemy will guide you through the automated verification process. More information regarding the automated process is below.
If Udemy asks you to complete the alternate verification process, however, those steps are also outlined in this article. Please note: the alternate verification process can only be completed once your course has been uploaded to Udemy, and is ready to be submitted for review.
Our system will also run periodic identity verification sweeps of existing instructors on the marketplace. The two-step process should only take minutes and you can exit and re-enter the flow at any time.
The first step of the process is to identify your ownership rights to the course content by selecting one of the options shown.
The second step of the process will differ depending on your ownership rights.
Automated Identity Verification Process
If you are the owner and creator of the content of the course you have submitted, you will be asked to provide your legal name, address, date of birth, and/or national I.D. number; and we will verify your identity with a third party provider we are partnering with to safely and accurately cross-check the information you provide. The information requested varies by country of residence (see country requirements).
Successful submission and verification with the automated system should only take seconds. Please review your information carefully before submitting as you will only have three attempts to successfully verify your information. Learn more about the requirements by country. If you are having trouble verifying your information with the automated system, please complete the process described below.
Alternate Verification Process with our Trust & Safety Team
If you are person or company publishing this course through either partnership, contract, or employment, or aren’t featured as a visible instructor or as a narrator for the course, you will need to complete a manual verification process. In addition, if you are a content owner from a country not supported by the automated process, you will also need to complete the manual verification process with our Trust & Safety team.
Please note: the alternate verification process can only be completed once your course has been uploaded to Udemy, and is ready to be submitted for review.
To complete the alternate process, please submit a video to verification@udemy.com claiming either ownership of the content or that you have obtained the necessary the rights to the use content you are publishing.
In the video, you must show your face & state the following:
- Your full legal name
- The name of the course(s) you are publishing
- Statement of ownership or rights to use the content below
“I, [full legal name], certify, under the penalty of perjury, that I am the original owner of all of the content used in my course(s) and, if applicable, have secured all the necessary rights to use content owned by another individual”.
In the body of the email, please include all of the above in written form.
If you are not the instructor of the course you are publishing, or if someone else is narrating the course, you will also need to either include documentation or a contract that shows you have the right to distribute this course, or, include a video from the original content creator stating they have given you permission to use their content.
Frequently Asked Questions
Do I need to complete verification every time I submit a new course for review?
No. Identity verification is only required once per account.
How does Udemy verify my personal data?
Udemy is partnered with a third party vendor, Trulioo, which leverages trusted and licensed data sources including; credit bureaus, electoral rolls, government issued, public and private data, telephone/utility records, and watch lists to verify the information you provide.
Is my personal data stored?
Neither our vendor nor we will store your date of birth, passport, or national ID information after the process is complete.
If I do not pass the automated identity verification, what happens?
You will be able to follow the alternate process to have your account verified.
All instructors must be verified before they can sell courses on Udemy. If you cannot verify your account, we will have to unpublish your existing courses and remove your account.
Will I need to still submit my course for review after I complete identity verification?
Yes, once you have successfully completed verification, please submit your course for review through the course management dashboard.
If I am a co-instructor in a course, do I need to complete identity verification?
No. Only the course owner must complete verification before the course can be submitted for review.
If I am an instructor on Udemy for Business, do I need to complete identity verification?
No, this is only required for instructors on the marketplace.
For automated identity verification, is Taiwan covered by China?
Yes. Taiwan is considered part of the Republic of China which covers all citizens over the age of 15.
If automated verification does not cover my country, will I be barred from making a course?
No, you can instead complete the alternate verification process with our Trust & Safety team described above.
Is verification required for free courses?
Yes. All published instructors are required to complete the verification process. This helps ensure the integrity of the marketplace.
How long does the alternative verification take?
The alternative verification process will take approximately 24 hours.
Can I use my business name for the verification process?
Yes, but we recommend submitting your personal name (first and last). If a business name is submitted, we will need to speak to a representative of the company, and verify that you are associated with that business. As a result, the verification process could take longer.