Guidance

Company strike off, dissolution and restoration

Information for directors, secretaries or company advisers about how to dissolve a company or restore a company to the register.

From:
Companies House
Published:
31 October 2014
Last updated:
27 January 2021, see all updates

Documents

Strike off, dissolution and restoration

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Details

This guide will be relevant to you if you’re a company officer or company adviser and you want to dissolve or restore a company. It includes information on:

  • why a company may apply to be struck off
  • when a company cannot apply to be struck off
  • how to apply and who to tell
  • how strike off and restoration notices are published in the Gazette
  • withdrawing a strike off application
  • objecting to a company’s dissolution
  • offences and penalties
  • what happens to companies no longer in operation
  • how to restore a company to the register by a court order or administrative restoration

Before applying to strike off your company

You have certain responsibilities to close down your business properly.

The company’s bank account will be frozen from the date of dissolution. Any credit balance in the account and other assets will pass to the Crown - you’ll have to restore the company to get anything back.

Coronavirus (COVID-19)

We’re closely following government guidance for working safely during coronavirus.

It’s taking much longer than usual to process paper documents sent to us by post - including applications to restore a company.

Use our online service to Close a company to help us process your application as quickly as possible.

Published 31 October 2014
Last updated 27 January 2021 + show all updates

  1. We've temporarily paused our voluntary and compulsory strike off processes for one month from 21 January until 21 February 2021.

  2. Update to guidance

  3. Guidance updated.

  4. Section 10.3 contact address details updated.

  5. Welsh HTML added

  6. Guidance converted to HTML

  7. Third Parties (Rights against Insurers) Regulations 2016 came into force. This guidance has been amended in Chapter 3 to include these new regulations.

  8. Guidance updated as a result of The Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Act.

  9. Section 10.1 corrected: 3 months to 2

  10. OLTR address updated and striking off periods updated to 2 months due to SBEE act implementation.

  11. Welsh translation added

  12. English HTML guidance added

  13. Guidance updated to version 3.8.

  14. Version 3.6 replaced with version 3.7

  15. Guidance updated from version 3.5 to version 3.6

  16. Welsh translation added.

  17. First published.

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