About director ID
A director identification number:
- is known as a ‘director ID’
- is a unique 15-digit number given to a director (or someone who intends to become a director) who has verified their identity with Australian Business Registry Services (ABRS).
Directors will only ever have one director ID. They'll keep it forever even if they change corporations or companies, stop being a director, change their name, move interstate or overseas.
The government announced the introduction of director ID as part of a package of reforms to address illegal phoenix activity. This will be delivered by the Australian Taxation Office as part of the Modernising Business Registers (MBR) program.
When do CATSI Act directors need to apply
Directors under the CATSI Act have a different timeframe to apply for director ID than directors under the Corporations Act 2001.
You can apply for a director ID from November 2021.
When you must apply depends on the date you become a director.
| Date you become a director | Date you must apply |
| On or before 31 October 2022 | By 30 November 2023 |
| From 1 November 2022 | Before appointment |
For more information, how to apply and by when see abrs.gov.au/director-identification-number
What to do with your director ID
When you receive your director ID, you need to pass it on to your corporation record-holder. This could be your corporation secretary (if your corporation size is large), your board or an authorised agent of the company.
If you are appointed as a director of any other companies or Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporations, in the future, you also need to give your director ID to the people responsible for maintaining the records of those organisations.
For now, corporations do not have to share director IDs with ORIC. We will let you know when corporations need to start doing this. For corporations that do want to provide this information to ORIC here's a form you can use. The director ID will be stored in your corporation's records, at this stage ORIC will not be verifying director IDs or publishing them.
