ASIC has released Consultation Paper 391 seeking feedback on what information on the companies register should be made available in the future, and who should have access.
ASIC is seeking feedback to understand the needs of registry users and ensure the future access to registry information balances transparency of important business information with impacts relating to privacy and safety, particularly given the heightened increase of cybercrime and impersonation scams.
What is being proposed?
ASIC is proposing to make more information available for free, including officeholders' names and status (current or ceased), director ID numbers and whether a director has confirmed their director ID.
The proposed settings would keep core company information broadly available while restricting sensitive personal information to verified users who have a clear need for it.
The proposal sets out access settings for types of company information across four main categories of users - general access, company access, business access, and government access.
From 1 July 2027, officeholders’ year of birth, residential locality and service address would be available to all registry users. Residential address and birth information would be restricted to certain business users.
ASIC expects the new access settings to be fully implemented from 1 August 2028, following a transition period during which companies can update officeholders’ service addresses so that their residential addresses remain restricted.
Providing feedback
View Consultation Paper 391 Access to information on the companies register.
Written submissions should be sent to consultation.registrydata@asic.gov.au by 5.00 pm on 12 October 2026. Feedback provided will not be treated as confidential unless you specifically request that we treat all or part of it in that way.
ASIC will also conduct a series of information sessions to outline the proposed settings. Expressions of interest to attend an information session can be made using the survey link: https://surveys.asic.gov.au/surveys/levels-of-access-to-asic-registry-data
ASIC intends to announce its final position on its approach to access to registry information by early 2027.
Background
The Treasury Laws Amendment (Business Registries Stabilisation and Uplift) Act 2026 which was enacted in July 2026, paved the way for the implementation of new information types in the companies register (director ID, officeholder service addresses and electronic addresses) and new powers to manage access for users of registry information.
In February 2026, ASIC removed residential addresses of company officeholders from purchased company extracts following longstanding privacy and safety concerns. The change was introduced as an interim measure while broader future access arrangements are considered (see: ASIC updates information available through purchased extracts).
About ASIC’s Registers
ASIC administers the companies register, which records information about Australian companies and certain people connected with those companies. The register supports transparency and confidence in the market by helping people identify companies, understand their status, and make informed decisions when dealing with them.
Public access to company information helps people check who they are dealing with, assess risk, support due diligence, enforce rights and comply with legal obligations. At the same time, some information on the register is personal or sensitive, and access settings must balance transparency with privacy, safety and security.
ASIC is Australia’s corporate, markets and financial services regulator.