Director Identification Numbers, or DIN for short, are unique identifiers being introduced for company directors. Recent amendments to the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) will require new and existing company directors to apply for their Director Identification Number from the Australian Business Registry Services (ABRS) from 1 November. The changes to legislation have been introduced in order to combat fraud, to improve identification and tracking of individual directors and importantly to prevent illegal phoenixing within companies.
All appointed directors or alternate directors of a company, registered foreign entity, registered body, or Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporation, will need to obtain their DIN in accordance with the updated legislation.
All existing company directors will have until 30 November 2022 to apply for their DIN (30 November 2023 for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporations). New company directors appointed between 1 November 2021 and 4 April 2022 they will be required to lodge a DIN application within 28 days of being appointed a director, and from 5 April new directors will need to apply for their application for a DIN prior to their appointment. Penalties for directors who don’t comply with such prescribed time frames could be facing criminal and civil charges, involving a civil penalty of up to 5000 penalty units, which currently equates to over $1.1 million.
For more information on Director Identification Numbers or general advice about your requirements as a company director, contact our office to arrange an appointment with our Principal, Patrick Sutton on 07 4785 5656 or your accountant.
