Reinstating a deregistered corporation
You can apply to have a deregistered corporation reinstated. There are also some circumstances under the Corporations (Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander) Act 2006 (CATSI Act) when ORIC or the courts may re-register a corporation.
What reinstatement means for a corporation
When a corporation's registration is reinstated, it’s like it was never deregistered in the first place.
- Anyone who was a director right before the deregistration happened becomes a director again.
- Any corporation property that the Registrar holds goes back to the corporation.
- Any corporation property with a loan or claim against it returns to the corporation with those claims still in place.
When a deregistered corporation can be reinstated
Court ordered deregistration and reinstatement
We can't change the registration status of a corporation if a court has said it must be closed – unless the court itself says to bring the corporation back.
A court can tell us to change the registration of your corporation if:
- someone who contests the deregistration or a past liquidator asks the court
- the court thinks it's fair to reinstate the registration.
If the court decides to reinstate your corporation, it can also:
- say that anything done since it was removed from the register is okay
- make any other orders it thinks are right.
Reinstatement by the Registrar
The Registrar can reinstate a corporation if it should not have been deregistered. For example, if the corporation kept doing business.
Reinstatement process
Ask ORIC to reinstate your deregistered corporation
To ask for your deregistered corporation to be registered again, you'll need to send us:
- a completed application for reinstatement
- the last general report for the financial year
- any other reports that would have been given to ORIC if your corporation was still registered, like financial or directors' reports
- proof that your corporation is still open for business.
What ORIC will do
ORIC will check your application and supporting documents to make sure they're complete. We might ask for more proof, like documents or a signed legal statement, when you apply.
If we approve your request to reinstate the corporation, we will change your corporation's status on the Register of Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander Corporations from deregistered to registered. We'll announce the reinstatement in the Government Gazette notices. We’ll also get in touch with the person who asked for the corporation to be reinstated.
