The Companies Registration Office confirmed today that the involuntary strike off process has recommenced since the middle of August 2025. Approximately 35,000 companies are facing involuntary strike off for failure to file late annual returns.
The process was paused in March 2020 due to Covid and recommenced in late 2023. It was subsequently paused again in January 2024. This has led to a large number of companies facing involuntary strike off.
The CRO will commence proceedings on companies that have the most annual returns outstanding, and it will take time to work through all the outstanding companies.
For more information on the involuntary strike off process see our previous article
Options for Companies That Are Late
If a company is late filing an annual return and in particular companies with multiple annual returns outstanding, the company has the following options:-
- File the outstanding annual returns with audited financial statements and pay the late filing fees
- Apply to the District Court for an extension of time to file the late annual returns
- Allow the CRO strike the company off involuntarily and risk being disqualified as a director for a period of 5 years and longer if the director(s) are directors of other companies that have been struck off involuntarily or there is debt outstanding in the company
Presenters and directors should be aware of the impact of involuntary strike off and the risk of prosecution by the Corporate Enforcement Authority if a company is struck off involuntarily.
CORE Issues
The CRO advised that a new IT provider has commenced working on the CORE system. There has been some issues with filing documentation through the system in the last few days but hopefully these issues will be resolved soon. Companies should try and file as early as possible in advance of the upcoming busy filing period to avoid any delays in filing.
NB: The content of this article is provided for information purposes only and does not constitute legal or other advice.
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