A director ID is a 15-digit identifier given to a director or someone who intends to become a director, who has verified their identity with the Australian Business Registry Services. This will be used to trace relationships to companies over time. Directors need to apply for their own ID and they will only ever have one, which they will keep forever.

Who is required to hold a director ID?

A director ID is required if an individual is an eligible officer of:

A company, a registered Australian body or a registered foreign company 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.
A person who expects to become an eligible officer within 12 months may apply for an ID (if they do not already hold one).

How do directors apply for an ID?

Applicants are required to verify their identity using a combination of identification documents and existing ATO held information.

There’s three options:

MyGovID – this is an application designed to allow users to authenticate with the Australian Government websites and services and was developed by the Australian Tax Office (ATO) and the Digital Transformation Agency (DTA).
Apply by phone – you can apply by phone if you have an Australia Tax file number (TFN) and have the information you need to verify your identify.
Paper form – If you can’t apply online or over the phone, you can apply using a downloadable form.

Further application details are available at the Australian Business Registry Services website.

When do directors need to apply?

Date of Directorship  – on or before 31 October 2021 (existing & new directors)

By 30 November 2022

Date of Directorship  – between 1 November 2021 and 4 April 2022

Within 28 days of appointment

Date of Directorship – from 5 April 2022

Before the appointment

When do directors need to use the ID?

The director ID needs to be provided to the corporation’s record-holder, which can be the company secretary, another director or an authorised agent of the company.

If appointed as a director of any other companies in the future, directors will also need to give their ID number to the people responsible for maintaining the records of those companies.

Directors must also inform the Registrar of any changes to the information attached to their ID.

What happens if directors fail to comply?

Failing to hold a director ID may result in an infringement notice or possible civil and/or criminal prosecution. The maximum penalties are 60 penalty units ($13,320 at the current penalty unit rate of $222) and 1 year imprisonment.

Get in touch today if you have any queries or need assistance applying for a Director ID.