How to apply for an Australian director ID in Australia

What is a director ID?

A director ID (director identification number, sometimes abbreviated DIN) is a unique identifier issued by ABRS after verifying your identity. You receive one director ID for life. It does not change if you change companies, stop being a director, change your name, or move interstate or overseas.

Who needs a director ID?

You need a director ID if you are a director of an Australian company, a registered foreign company, a registered Australian body, or an Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander corporation. An alternate director must apply before acting in the appointing director’s place. A company secretary who is not also a director does not need one.

What if you cannot set up a myID?

The online process requires a myID. If you live in Australia and cannot set up one, you can apply by phone with two Australian identity documents, one primary and one secondary. If ABRS cannot confirm your identity by phone, it will ask you to complete the paper form for people living in Australia (NAT 75437). If you live outside Australia, the paper process is different. See How to apply for an Australian director ID from outside Australia.

Step 1: Set up your digital ID (myID)

Applying online requires a myID with at least a standard identity strength, which is established with two Australian identity documents, such as a passport, driver’s licence, birth certificate, citizenship certificate, Medicare card, visa, or ImmiCard. Download the myID app from the App Store or Google Play and follow the prompts. Australian citizens and former residents living overseas can use this pathway if they hold the required Australian identity documents.

Step 2: Gather your ATO details

ABRS verifies your identity against Australian Taxation Office (ATO) records, and the details you need depend on your myID identity strength. At strong, you need either your tax file number or the residential address the ATO holds for you. At standard, you need that address, your tax file number if you wish, and answers to questions from two documents, such as bank account details known to the ATO, a notice of assessment, superannuation fund details (not a self-managed fund), a dividend statement, a Centrelink payment summary, or a PAYG payment summary.

Step 3: Apply through ABRS online

Log in to ABRS online with your myID and follow the prompts to verify your identity. The director ID issues immediately on successful verification. Keep it somewhere secure and give it to each company of which you become a director.

New director ID requirements from 1 July 2027

From 1 July 2027, companies will need to provide director IDs to the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC) through company reporting processes, including at annual reviews and when notifying appointments and changes to director details. New directors will need to give their director ID to their company within 7 days of appointment. An application to incorporate a new company or to register a foreign company will also need to include each director’s director ID; because the online process issues the director ID immediately, this should not delay a registration. The director ID regime began in November 2021 as a standalone identifier, and the amendments passed in June 2026 link it to ASIC’s companies register for the first time. Check before 1 July 2027 that ABRS and ASIC hold the same details for you.

Keeping your details current

If your name or residential address changes, update your details through ABRS online, tell each company of which you are a director within 7 days, and the company must notify ASIC within 28 days.

Penalties

Criminal and civil penalties apply for failing to apply for a director ID when required, applying for more than one, or misrepresenting a director ID. Since 1 July 2026, ASIC can disqualify a person from managing corporations for up to 3 years if the person fails to apply when directed by ABRS. If you have been appointed without applying for a director ID, you should apply as soon as possible.

How I can help

Each director must make their own application, but I manage the timing and requirements as part of incorporating subsidiaries and registering foreign companies in Australia. If you would like help, please enquire through the contact form.