Yes. In most cases, if you are applying for administrative restoration of a dissolved UK company, you need to bring its Companies House filing record up to date before the application can be accepted. That normally includes filing outstanding accounts and confirmation statements, paying the relevant filing fees and outstanding late-filing penalties, and dealing with any other requirements connected with the restoration. However, there is an important distinction: you do not necessarily incur late-filing penalties for accounts that became due while the company was dissolved. This is one of the details that can easily be missed when preparing a restoration application.

Companies House requires the applicant to submit the documents necessary to bring the company's records up to date as part of an administrative restoration application using Form RT01. Understanding exactly which accounts need to be filed, which penalties are payable, and when you can submit the RT01 can save considerable time.

What Does “Overdue Accounts” Mean After a Company Is Dissolved?

A UK limited company normally has continuing filing obligations while it is registered. These include filing annual accounts and confirmation statements with Companies House. If the company fails to file its accounts, Companies House may impose late-filing penalties and, in certain circumstances, begin compulsory strike-off proceedings. Once the company is dissolved, however, its legal position changes. It is no longer an active registered company in the ordinary sense.

If you later seek administrative restoration, Companies House effectively requires you to address the company's outstanding filing position as part of putting the company back on the register. The current RT01 guidance specifically says the application should include all outstanding company documents, including accounts or confirmation statements that should have been filed when the company was dissolved. That means restoration is not simply a matter of completing the RT01 form and paying the restoration fee.

The basic principle

Think of restoration as having two connected stages:

1. Reconstruct the company's outstanding filing position.
2. Apply to restore the company to the register.

Trying to skip the first stage can result in an incomplete restoration application.

Do You Have to File All Outstanding Accounts Before Restoration?

For an administrative restoration, you should generally prepare and file the outstanding accounts that are required to bring the Companies House record up to date. Section 1025 of the Companies Act 2006 requires the applicant to deliver documents necessary to bring the registrar's records up to date.

The current RT01 form reflects this requirement by listing any outstanding accounts among the documents that should accompany the application. This is particularly important where a company was dissolved because it stopped keeping up with its filing obligations. For example, suppose:

• ABC Consulting Ltd's accounts were due in March 2024.
• The company failed to file them.
• Companies House subsequently struck the company off.
• The company was dissolved in August 2024.
• The former director wants to restore it in 2026.

The director should not simply complete RT01 and send it to Companies House. The outstanding filing position needs to be addressed as part of the restoration process. Depending on the company's circumstances, that could involve preparing overdue accounts and outstanding confirmation statements before or alongside the RT01 application.

What About Accounts That Became Due While the Company Was Dissolved?

This is where the rules become more nuanced. A company may have accounts whose filing deadlines would have fallen during the period in which it was dissolved. It would be misleading to assume that every one of those accounts automatically attracts a late-filing penalty.

Companies House guidance specifically states that the company is not liable for a late-filing penalty for accounts received on restoration where the period allowed for filing those accounts ended after dissolution and before restoration. In practical terms, there is a difference between:

• an account that was already overdue before dissolution, and
• an account whose filing deadline fell during the dissolution period.

That distinction can materially affect the amount you need to pay.

Example

Imagine a company's accounts were due on 30 June 2024, but the company was dissolved in September 2024. Those accounts were already overdue when the company disappeared from the register. The relevant late-filing consequences therefore need to be dealt with as part of restoration.

Now consider a different accounting period where the filing deadline would have fallen in February 2025, but the company was already dissolved at that point. The rules concerning penalties are different. The company is not liable for a penalty where the filing period ended after dissolution and before restoration. This is one reason it is worth checking the company's filing history and dates carefully rather than simply assuming that every missing year carries a penalty.

Which Documents May Need to Be Filed?

Outstanding accounts are only one part of the restoration package. The current RT01 documentation requirements identify several items that may need to be dealt with:

• Form RT01 and the restoration fee
• Outstanding accounts
• Outstanding late-filing penalties
• Outstanding confirmation statements and their filing fees
• A bona vacantia waiver letter where applicable
• Form AD01 where a registered office change is required
• Form EM01 where a registered email address change is applicable

The exact documents depend on the company's history.

Accounts

These are usually the most obvious missing filings. You need to establish which accounts remain outstanding and what accounting periods they cover.

Confirmation statements

Accounts are not the only filing obligation. A company may also have missing confirmation statements. A common mistake is to prepare the accounts but overlook the confirmation statement history.

Late-filing penalties

Outstanding penalties relating to accounts may need to be paid as part of the restoration process. Companies House advises applicants to contact it if they need to establish what penalties are due.

Bona vacantia waiver

If company property or rights passed to the Crown as bona vacantia following dissolution, a waiver or consent from the relevant Crown representative may be required. This is particularly important where the dissolved company owned property, money, intellectual property, shares or other assets. The current GOV.UK guidance states that the former director or shareholder is responsible for obtaining the relevant bona vacantia waiver where required.

Should You File the Accounts Before Sending Form RT01?

As a practical matter, prepare the outstanding accounts and other filings before submitting the restoration application, and make sure the restoration package is complete. The objective is not simply to demonstrate that accounts exist. Companies House needs the documents necessary to bring its records up to date. This means a sensible restoration process is:

Step 1: Check the company's filing history

Start with the company's Companies House record. Identify:

• the date of dissolution;
• the reason for strike-off;
• the last accounts filed;
• the last confirmation statement filed;
• missing accounting periods;
• outstanding penalties;
• registered office issues; and
• whether the company had assets that may have become bona vacantia.

Step 2: Establish the outstanding filing requirements

Do not automatically assume that every year between incorporation and restoration requires a full set of accounts. The company's accounting reference date, previous filing history and period of dissolution all matter. This is where an accountant can be particularly useful if the company traded, had employees, held assets or had complicated transactions.

Step 3: Prepare the accounts

Prepare the outstanding accounts using the correct accounting periods and applicable filing requirements. If the company traded before dissolution, reconstructing the financial records may require bank statements, invoices, bookkeeping records, tax information and other historical documents.

Step 4: Deal with penalties and other filings

Check which late-filing penalties remain payable and whether confirmation statements or other documents are outstanding.

Step 5: Deal with bona vacantia

If the company had assets when it was dissolved, establish whether a bona vacantia waiver is required and obtain it before submitting a complete restoration application.

Step 6: Submit RT01

The current administrative restoration fee is £341. The application must be made within six years of dissolution and, for the standard administrative route, the applicant must be a former director or shareholder/member and the company must have been carrying on business or in operation when it was struck off.

Can You Restore a Company Without Filing the Accounts?

For an administrative restoration application, you should not expect Companies House to restore the company while required outstanding documents remain unresolved. The statutory framework requires the applicant to deliver documents necessary to bring the registrar's records up to date. This does not mean every restoration situation is identical.

For example, a company may have been dissolved after its filing obligations were already substantially up to date, leaving very little documentation to reconstruct. Conversely, a company that stopped trading years ago but failed to file several sets of accounts and confirmation statements may have a considerably larger restoration package. The key question is therefore not simply: “Are the accounts overdue?” It is: “What documents are necessary to bring the company's Companies House record up to date for restoration?” That is the more useful way to approach the process.

What Happens If the Company Was Dormant?

A dormant company still has filing obligations. Dormant status does not mean that Companies House automatically has no accounts or confirmation statements to receive. If a dormant company was struck off and later needs restoration, you may still need to address outstanding dormant accounts and confirmation statements.

The advantage is that dormant accounts are often considerably simpler to prepare than accounts for a company that was actively trading. Nevertheless, the company's actual filing history should be checked rather than assuming that dormant status eliminates all restoration paperwork.

What If the Company Was Trading?

Trading companies require more careful preparation. If the company was actively trading when it was dissolved, reconstructing overdue accounts may involve:

• business bank statements;
• sales invoices;
• purchase invoices;
• payroll records;
• VAT records;
• corporation tax information;
• asset registers;
• director loan information; and
• bookkeeping records.

This is particularly important for founders who operated a company from outside the UK. A global founder may have incorporated a UK company, operated it for several years, and then lost track of its Companies House obligations. By the time restoration becomes necessary, the accounting records may be spread across several countries or accounting systems.

In that situation, the restoration problem is partly a records reconstruction exercise. IncorpUK, as a UK company formation and management platform for global founders, sits within the broader ecosystem of services that can help international entrepreneurs understand their UK company administration obligations. For complex historic accounts, however, specialist accounting advice may still be appropriate.

Do You Have to Pay Late-Filing Penalties?

Potentially, yes but not necessarily for every missing accounting period. The current RT01 guidance requires outstanding late-filing penalties for accounts to be dealt with as part of the restoration application.

The important qualification is that the company is not liable for a late-filing penalty where the filing deadline ended after dissolution and before restoration. Therefore, calculate penalties based on the relevant dates rather than adding up every year the company was absent from the register. This distinction can be especially valuable when a company has been dissolved for several years.

What If the Company Was Voluntarily Struck Off?

This is a fundamentally different situation. Administrative restoration using RT01 is generally available where the Registrar struck the company off under the relevant compulsory strike-off provisions and the statutory conditions are satisfied.

If the directors themselves applied for voluntary strike-off, administrative restoration is not available through the normal RT01 route. GOV.UK states that a court order is required in that situation. That distinction should be established before spending time preparing an RT01 application. A company with years of overdue accounts may therefore face two separate questions:

1. Are the filing records sufficiently up to date for restoration?
2. Is administrative restoration actually the correct restoration route?

Answering the second question first can prevent wasted work.

A Simple Restoration Checklist

Before submitting an application, work through this checklist:

Company status

• Was the company struck off by the Registrar?
• Was it dissolved less than six years ago?
• Was it trading or in operation when struck off?
• Is the applicant a former director or member/shareholder?

Accounts and filings

• Which accounts are outstanding?
• Which confirmation statements are outstanding?
• Which filing fees are due?
• Which late-filing penalties are actually payable?

Assets

• Did the company own property or other assets when it was dissolved?
• Did any property become bona vacantia?
• Is a waiver required?

Registered details

• Does the registered office need updating?
• Is an AD01 required?
• Does the registered email address need updating?

Application

• Is the current RT01 being used?
• Is the correct restoration fee included?
• Are all supporting documents ready?

This checklist is more reliable than treating “file the overdue accounts” as the entire restoration process.

FAQ: Overdue Accounts and Company Restoration

1. Do I have to file overdue accounts before restoring my company?

For administrative restoration, you need to deliver the outstanding documents necessary to bring the company's Companies House records up to date. This normally includes outstanding accounts and confirmation statements where applicable.

2. Do I have to pay all late-filing penalties?

You need to deal with outstanding penalties that are payable, but accounts whose filing deadlines fell after the company was dissolved and before restoration are not subject to a late-filing penalty under the relevant rule.

3. Can I submit RT01 before preparing the accounts?

It is safer to prepare the required outstanding filings and assemble the complete restoration package first. Companies House requires the documents necessary to bring its records up to date as part of administrative restoration.

4. What if my company was dormant?

You may still have outstanding dormant accounts and confirmation statements to address. Dormant status does not automatically remove Companies House filing requirements.

5. What if my company was voluntarily dissolved?

The normal administrative RT01 route is not available where the directors applied for voluntary strike-off. GOV.UK states that a court order is required to restore a company in that situation.

6. How much does administrative restoration cost?

As of February 2026, the Companies House fee for an RT01 administrative restoration application is £341. Other costs can arise from overdue filings, penalties, professional assistance and, where relevant, a bona vacantia waiver.

7. What happens to accounts that became due while the company was dissolved?

The company is not liable for a late-filing penalty where the relevant filing period ended after dissolution and before restoration. The underlying filing requirements still need to be considered when bringing the company's records up to date.

8. Can I restore a company if I have lost its old accounting records?

Possibly, but restoring the company does not remove the need to address its outstanding filing obligations. You may need to reconstruct historical financial information before the accounts can be prepared properly.

Conclusion

Yes, overdue accounts are an important part of the company restoration process but the rule is more precise than simply “file everything that is missing.” For administrative restoration, the applicant must provide the documents necessary to bring the company's Companies House record up to date. That commonly includes outstanding accounts, confirmation statements, relevant filing fees and payable late-filing penalties.

At the same time, accounts whose filing deadlines fell after dissolution and before restoration are treated differently for late-filing penalties. The best approach is therefore to reconstruct the company's filing position first, identify exactly what is outstanding, prepare the necessary accounts and supporting documents, resolve any bona vacantia issues, and only then submit the RT01 application.

For founders, particularly those managing UK companies from overseas, the important lesson is simple: restoration is not just about bringing a company back onto the register. It is about putting its statutory record back into an acceptable position at the same time.