Director Identification Numbers

From November 2021, all directors of a company are required to verify their identity as part of a new director identification number (Director ID) regime. The Director ID will be a unique identifier that a director will apply for once and will keep forever. The new regime is expected to cover more than 2.5 million company directors.

Background to the Director ID Regime

As part of its Digital Business Plan, the Federal Goverment announced the full implementation of the Modernising Business Registers (MBR) program, This program will:

• establish the new Australian Business Registry Services (ABRS)
• steamline how you register, view and maintain your business information with the government.

The ABRS is responsible for the implementation and administration of Director IDs. ASIC will be responsible for the enforcement of associated offences.

Who Needs a Director ID?

You need a Director ID if you’re an eligible officer of:

• a company, a registered Australian body or a registered foreign compnay under the Corporations Act 2001 (Corporations Act)
• an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporation registered under the Corporations (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) Act 2006 (CATSI Act)

An eligible officer is a person who is appointed as:

• a director
• an alternate director who is acting in that capacity.

Importantly, it is not only the directors of trading companies that need a Director ID. If you’re a director of a passive investment entity or indeed a corporate trustee (such as of a discretionary trust of a self-managed super fund), you too will need to apply for a Director ID.

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