The Corporations Act 2001 & general law requires that, as a company officeholder, you need consider seriously what the position & responsibilities entail before you put your hand up & sign on. If you do not have the time for the obligations that come with the company directorship you may need to have a rethink.
As a company director you will have duties & obligations, mainly practicing care & commitment, being surefooted in acting in the best interests of the company, preventing the company from trading whilst insolvent &avoiding conflicts of interest between the company’s & your own.
An officeholder has the responsibility for the company adhering to its obligations according to the Corporations Act 2001. These include, but aren’t limited to, the following:
A registered office address located in Australia, which ASIC must be informed of. It has to be a physical address, not a post office box.
A business address which can be the same as the office address, or somewhere different. However, like the requirement for an office address, ASIC do not allow post office boxes.
Director’s personal details must be provided to ASIC. These include full names, current residential address, date & place of birth.
Financial records & transactions must be maintained in an accurate & timely fashion with up to date explanations of transactions & financial position of the company.
ASIC needs to be told of any changes in the company i.e. office and/or business addresses, directors addresses & resignations & appointments, share issues and transfers. Fines issued by ASIC can apply if they are not informed when these changes occur.
Annual statements issued by ASIC need to be examined to determine if ASIC have correct details of the company & relevant fees to be paid such as the annual review fee.
After your appointment as a company director, provided you are scrupulous in your transactions with the company & on its behalf, keep up to date regarding your company’s finances, performance, and any changes to the company, & finally, act in the best interests of the company, its shareholders & creditors, it is unlikely that you should get into difficulty. Most importantly, profession advice should be sought if you need to address any concerns that you may have.
Related Tag: Company Registration