As part of a number of initiatives of the Commonwealth
Government to deter and penalise corporate phoenix activity, the
requirement for company directors to have a Director Identification
Number (DIN) is a further step closer with the
Treasury Laws Amendment (Registries Modernisation and Other
Measures) Bill 2019 being assented to on 22 June 2020.
The new requirements will commence once the Minister establishes
the relevant Commonwealth body to be the Registrar.
Phoenixing occurs when the controllers of a company deliberately
avoid paying the company's liabilities by winding up the
company and transferring its assets to another company. The
Commonwealth Government estimates the cost of phoenixing to the
Australian economy to be between $2.9 billion and $5.1 billion
annually.
