REMINDER: EXISTING DIRECTORS MUST APPLY FOR DIRECTOR ID BEFORE 30 NOVEMBER 2022 DEADLINE
By Devin Elliott, Lawyer
On 22 June 2020 the Australian Parliament enacted the Treasury Laws Amendment (Registries Modernisation and Other Measures) Act 2020 (Cth), which amended, inter alia, the Corporations Act 2001 (Cth) to implement a new director identification number scheme.
All directors of a company, registered Australian body, registered foreign company or Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporation are required under this new scheme to apply for a director ID.
This reform no doubt comes as part of the ongoing efforts from both the government and the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (‘ASIC’) to not only modernise how Australia’s company registration systems operate, but also to combat illegal phoenix activity and improve the accountability of directors (refer to our previous newsletter here).
Directors who were appointed between 1 November 2021 and 4 April 2022 were required to apply for a director ID within 28 days of their appointment.
Importantly, all other directors who were appointed on or before 31 October 2021 have until 30 November 2022 to apply for a director ID. Failure to apply on time constitutes a criminal offence.
The new Australian Business Registry Services (‘ABRS’) is responsible for administering the director ID initiative, and director ID applications can be lodged via their website.
If you have any questions about registering a company or about your duties as a director, please contact our Corporate Advisory Team: Devin Elliott on (03) 8540 0293 or devin.elliott@mst.com.au, John Sier on (03) 8540 0270 or john.sier@mst.com.au, Michael Carr on (03) 8540 0260 or michael.carr@mst.com.au, or Savvas Apostolou on (03) 8540 0261 or savvas.apostolou@mst.com.au.
