Registry stabilisation and uplift – draft legislation consultation

Have your say on draft laws to improve Australia’s business registers, concerning:

• linking Director Identification Numbers (Director IDs) to the Company Register

• giving ASIC new registry powers

• removing Modernising Business Registers (MBR) legislation.

A paper outlining the approach has been provided. It covers the design for Director ID linking and the responsibilities of directors and companies.

We also seek feedback on whether this framework could guide future integration of beneficial ownership information into the Company Register.

Director ID linking

The draft law strengthens the Director ID system by linking Director IDs to ASIC’s Company Register. This will make it easier to track directors across companies.

To do this, companies will provide Director IDs for all directors in their regular company reporting.

Registry powers

ASIC will be provided with powers to:

• publish Director ID information on the Company Register

• enforce penalties for non-compliance

• make directors’ personal details more private.

In addition, Australian Business Registry Services will be able to share Director ID information with ASIC.

Unwinding MBR legislation

These changes deal with legislation from the former MBR program which needs to be turned off now the former program is no longer happening. ASIC will remain responsible for stabilising and improving the registers.

Participate in consultation roundtables

To participate in consultation meetings or roundtables, please notify us of your interest via email at RegDataPolicy@treasury.gov.au by Friday, 23 January 2026.