ASIC is no longer treating DIN non-compliance lightly under new rules
Employers across Australia are being urged to treat director identification number (DIN) compliance as a genuine governance obligation as new legislative powers for the corporate regulator take effect.
A DIN is a 15-digit unique identifier issued by the Australian Business Registry Services to a company director or someone who intends to become a company director.
Under a newly passed legislation, Parliament is linking DINs to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission's (ASIC) Companies Register to strengthen its regime.
It is also expanding the enforcement power of ASIC to disqualify non-compliant directors and deregister companies that provide false or misleading information.
While the new reporting requirements do not commence until July 2027, law firm Hall & Wilcox is warning that companies have no time to waste in getting their house in order.
"Treating DIN compliance as an administrative afterthought is no longer a defensible position," the firm said in an insight.
What the law requires
From July 2027, companies and registrable bodies must provide the DIN of each director to ASIC at key reporting points, according to Hall & Wilcox.
This includes the registration of a new company, the appointment of a director, notification of changes to director details, and annual reporting.
Directors are also required to provide their DIN to their company within seven days of appointment. Where a newly appointed director does not yet hold a DIN, a grace period of seven days to notify the company once the Registrar issues the number is applied, after which the company has 14 days to lodge it with ASIC.
Non-compliance is a strict liability offence attracting a maximum penalty of 120 penalty units, the law firm warned.
ASIC has also been given new disqualification powers effective since July 2026, allowing it to bar a person from managing corporations for up to three years where it reasonably believes they have wilfully refused to apply for a DIN or deliberately frustrated the process.
The action plan for employers
Hall & Wilcox is advising boards, company secretaries, and their advisors to begin preparing immediately, even ahead of the 2027 deadline.
The firm recommends companies confirm that all current directors have obtained a DIN and review onboarding procedures to ensure DINs are obtained and recorded at the point of appointment.
It also urged employers to ensure governance systems are configured to report DINs to ASIC as part of standard lodgements.
