The routes, side by side
| Route | When it fits | Who runs it | What happens to what’s left |
|---|---|---|---|
| Voluntary strike-off (DS01) | The company can pay its bills, and hasn’t traded, changed its name or sold stock in the last 3 months2 | The directors | Share it among the shareholders before applying; anything left goes to the Crown2 |
| Members’ voluntary liquidation | The company can pay its bills, and the directors make a declaration of solvency1,8 | An authorised insolvency practitioner, as liquidator8 | The liquidator deals with the assets8 |
| Creditors’ voluntary liquidation | The company can’t pay its bills; 75% of shareholders by share value agree1,8 | An authorised insolvency practitioner, as liquidator8 | Creditors’ interests come first1 |
| Administration | The company can’t pay its bills1 | An administrator | Creditors’ interests come first1 |
| Stay dormant | You may need the company again | The directors | Nothing; it still files accounts and a confirmation statement every year1 |
Can you use strike-off?
You can apply to strike off your company only if, in the last 3 months, it has not traded, sold off stock, or changed its name; and it is not threatened with liquidation and has no agreement with creditors, such as a company voluntary arrangement2. The law is stricter in its detail: in the 3 months before applying, the company must not have carried on business or engaged in any other activity, except what is needed to apply, to wind up its affairs, or to meet a legal requirement. Paying a debt from its trading days is not trading5. Applying when you shouldn’t is an offence5,2.
If a creditor is unpaid, strike-off is the wrong tool: the Gazette notice invites anyone to object, and any liability of the directors carries on after the company is dissolved4. Fileyear’s strike-off filing is only for companies that can pay all their debts. If yours can’t, speak to an authorised insolvency practitioner.
Closing by strike-off, step by step
- Wind things down. Tell HMRC, deal with employees properly (final pay, redundancy rules, closing the PAYE scheme), and close or transfer any business assets, bank accounts and domain names2.
- File the final accounts and Company Tax Return with HMRC, saying they are the final trading accounts and the company will soon be struck off. Pay all Corporation Tax and other tax. A loss in the final year might be set against earlier profits (“terminal loss relief”)2. You don’t have to file final accounts with Companies House2.
- Pay out what’s left to the shareholders, before applying. See the £25,000 rule below.
- Apply with form DS01, signed by a majority of the directors2,4. It costs £13 online or £18 on paper, and you can’t pay with a cheque from the company’s own account3,2.
- Send a copy within 7 days to everyone who could be affected: shareholders, creditors, employees, the managers or trustees of any employee pension fund, and any director who didn’t sign2.
- Wait for the Gazette. Companies House checks the form and publishes a notice in The Gazette. If nobody objects, the company is struck off once the 2 months in the notice have passed, and a second notice means it no longer legally exists2,4.
A worked example
A director applies on 1 February 2027. Suppose the first Gazette notice appears on 16 February 2027: the company can be struck off from 16 April 2027 at the earliest, and is dissolved when the second notice is published4. Its final Corporation Tax payment is due on the usual date, 9 months and 1 day after its final accounting period ends, so it pays before applying2.
If the company stops being eligible after you apply (it starts trading again, or becomes insolvent), you must withdraw the application, online or with form DS02. One director’s signature is enough2.
The £25,000 rule
Money the company pays its shareholders in anticipation of a strike-off is normally treated as a capital distribution (taxed as a capital gain) if the total is £25,000 or less, and the company has collected what it is owed and paid its debts, or intends to6. If the total is more than £25,000, the whole amount, not just the excess, is treated as income instead: in practice, as a dividend6,2.
A capital gain on the shares may qualify for Business Asset Disposal Relief, which is charged at 18% on qualifying gains from 6 April 2026 (14% from 6 April 2025 to 5 April 2026), with a lifetime limit of £1 million7. Whether you qualify depends on your circumstances, so check HMRC’s conditions, or ask an adviser, before you pay anything out.
What happens to anything you leave behind
When a company is struck off, it loses its bank accounts and everything it still owns passes to the Crown, including bank balances and any payment it receives later, such as an HMRC refund2. This is called “bona vacantia”: ownerless property, collected on the Crown’s behalf by the Government Legal Department in England and Wales9. To get it back, the company has to be restored to the register first2.
Keep the company’s business documents, such as bank statements, invoices and receipts, for 7 years after it is struck off2. If the company still owes you money, or you owe it, settle the director’s loan before you apply: see director’s loan accounts and s455.
Not ready to close?
You can let a company become dormant instead, for as long as you want, as long as it files its accounts and confirmation statement each year1. See dormant companies. To see the final accounts deadlines that still apply before you close, use the deadline checker.