What Is DIN?

Director Identification Number (DIN) is a mandatory requirement for all existing and new directors (or proposed directors) of a company. A DIN is issued in accordance with the directions provided by the amendment to the Companies Act. It is an 8-digit Unique Identification Number allotted to all directors. It has lifetime validity.

Purpose of a DIN

The Director Identification Number provides a unique identity to the director helps in maintaining information of all directors in a database. In past decades, several Indian cities have had chit fund companies promise its residents incomparable returns, then escape with their money to another city.
To be able to cross-check such persons, and to ensure the director’s identity is valid and all information provided is true, the government introduced the DIN. Accordingly, the DIN directory will contain all information regarding the directors, such as their name, PAN number and also their present address. Any change in the address or other information needs to be updated immediately.
The best part of DIN is that, irrespective of the number of companies a person floats, they can use their DIN obtained for a lifetime. What it means is that the DIN is specific to the individual who has obtained it, and not for the company he/she has obtained it.
For instance, if a director of one company applies for a DIN and he wants to start another company, and act as a director, he can do so, with the same DIN.

Procedure for DIN Application

A DIN is a mandatory entity for registering any company in India. Without a DIN, one cannot be a director. A DSC certificate, or a Digital Signature Certificate, is a requirement for applying for the DIN. The DSC is obtained in the form of a USB, and is valid for one to two years.
To obtain a DSC, you must fill an application for the same, which will, of course, include your signature, and also an identity proof and residence proof. All of these documents must be self-attested.
For foreign nationals and NRIs, the self-attested copies and identity proofs must be notarized or verified by their embassy or, in case of NRIs, the Indian Embassy.
The following proofs are acceptable:

Address Proof

1. Driving license
2. Voter ID card
3. Utility bills
4. Passport
5. Tax receipts (corporation, property tax, service tax and sales tax, registration and so on)
6. Bank Statement (attested)
7. PF statement

Identity Proof

1. PAN card of the applicant (for Indian nationals)
2. Passport of the applicant, if they are foreign nationals and NRI’s.
Once the DSC is obtained, you can apply for a DIN.

DIN Registration

The DIN application, duly signed with the DSC, should be submitted to the Ministry of Corporate Affairs, along with a photograph and identity and address proofs.
If the application is complete, and all information provided is relevant, a DIN number is provided immediately. In case of clarifications sought by the DIN cell, they need to be furnished by the applicant.
The DIN application gets processed in 2 to 3 days, making it easy for directors to obtain them during the company registration procedure. An intimation, with the DIN allotment letter, is sent to the applicants to complete the process.
A DIN is a permanent number supplied to a director, and thus, all information is stored in the Ministry database. A DIN can be searched through the DIN/DPIN search.

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