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Creating an SFTP or FTPS AWS Transfer user

The Integration Hub file transfer service lets you send files to another Ministry of Justice service. Each user has their own private upload folder and can upload files only; they cannot view, download or change files after upload.

Before you request a user

Decide which transfer method you need:

  • Use SFTP if your file-transfer client supports SSH keys. This is the recommended method.
  • Use FTPS only when your client cannot use SFTP. FTPS needs a password and access to additional network ports.

You also need to provide:

  • a lowercase username, made up of letters, numbers, hyphens or underscores
  • the environment you need to use, such as development or production
  • the public IP addresses or CIDR ranges from which you will connect
  • an SSH public key for SFTP access
  • a technical contact who can test the connection

Do not send a password or SSH private key in Slack, email or a GitHub issue.

Request a user

Post in the #ask-integration-hub Slack channel with the required information. The Integration Hub team will confirm the username, source network and target environment, then create the user and arrange password setup where it is needed.

The service is available to Ministry of Justice services. You may request access for a third party that needs to send files to your service.

Connect to the service

Use the hostname for the protocol and environment supplied by the Integration Hub team. Production hostnames are:

  • SFTP: sftp.file-transfer.service.justice.gov.uk on port 22
  • FTPS: ftps.file-transfer.service.justice.gov.uk on port 21

For FTPS, your network must also permit passive data connections on ports 8192 to 8200.

Use explicit FTPS with TLS. Do not select plain FTP or implicit FTPS in your client.

When you sign in, you start in your own upload folder. Upload the file to that folder and wait for your client to report that the transfer completed. The service cannot show you the file afterwards, so retain your local copy until the receiving service confirms it has processed the file.

Getting help

For a new user, changed IP address, replacement SSH key or connection problem, post in #ask-integration-hub. Include the username, environment, protocol, connection time and the error message. Do not include passwords or private keys.

This page was last reviewed on 1 September 2026. It needs to be reviewed again on 1 December 2026 by the page owner #integration-hub .