Restoring a dissolved UK company is not simply a matter of putting its name back on the Companies House register. The documents you need depend on how the company was dissolved, when it was dissolved, whether it had assets, and whether you qualify for administrative or court restoration.

For companies eligible for administrative restoration, the core package normally includes form RT01, outstanding company filings, applicable fees and penalties, and, where the company had bona vacantia assets, a bona vacantia waiver letter. The current Companies House administrative restoration fee is £341.

If administrative restoration is unavailable, a court application may instead require form N208, a witness statement, the court fee and supporting evidence. This distinction is critical. Sending the wrong documents can result in rejection and unnecessary delays.

First: Which Restoration Route Applies to Your Company?

Before collecting documents, establish which restoration route you need.

Administrative restoration

Administrative restoration is generally the simpler route, but it is only available if specific conditions are met. According to current Companies House guidance, you can apply if:

• You were a director or shareholder of the company.
• The company was struck off and dissolved by the Registrar within the last six years.
• The company was trading when it was dissolved.

Importantly, administrative restoration is not available where the directors voluntarily applied for the company to be struck off. In that situation, a court restoration may be necessary.

Court restoration

A court application may be required where administrative restoration is unavailable. This can include companies that were voluntarily struck off, as well as other circumstances where a person with a sufficient interest needs the company restored.

In England and Wales, the standard application is made using form N208, accompanied by a witness statement and the applicable court fee. The documentation is therefore substantially different from the administrative process.

Documents Needed for Administrative Restoration

If your company qualifies for administrative restoration, the documentation is relatively well defined.

1. Form RT01

The central document is form RT01 Application for Administrative Restoration to the Register. This is the formal application to Companies House asking the Registrar to restore the dissolved company. The current RT01 guidance states that the application costs £341 and that Companies House can reject the application if the required information or fee is missing.

The form requires the applicant to confirm that they are legally entitled to apply and that the company satisfies the conditions for administrative restoration. Use the company's exact registered details and company number. Small inconsistencies between the application and Companies House records can create avoidable problems.

2. Outstanding company documents

Restoration does not automatically erase the company's previous filing obligations. Companies House requires outstanding documents that should have been filed before the company was dissolved. Depending on the company's circumstances, these may include:

• Annual accounts
• Confirmation statements
• Other outstanding company filings
• Relevant forms needed to bring the company's record up to date

The current Companies House restoration guidance specifically requires applicants to deliver documents necessary to bring the company up to date.

A useful point about the dissolution period

The treatment of filings due during the period when the company was dissolved is more nuanced than simply preparing every missed filing as though the company had continued operating normally.

Companies House guidance explains that the registrar will normally disregard the period during which the company was dissolved when considering certain outstanding accounts. Accounts that became due shortly before dissolution are treated differently from obligations arising during the dissolution period. For that reason, do not blindly recreate years of filings. Establish which documents Companies House actually requires.

3. Outstanding Filing Fees and Penalties

You may also need to pay outstanding filing fees and applicable penalties. The RT01 guidance specifically requires outstanding late filing penalties for accounts to be dealt with as part of the restoration application.

This can be significant where a company was dissolved after falling behind with its statutory filings. A founder should therefore calculate the likely restoration cost before submitting RT01. The total cost may include:

• £341 Companies House restoration fee
• Bona vacantia waiver fee, where required
• Outstanding filing fees
• Applicable late filing penalties
• Court fees, if court restoration is necessary
• Professional fees, if legal or accounting assistance is required

The £341 restoration fee is not the same thing as the cost of dealing with the company's outstanding compliance obligations.

4. Bona Vacantia Waiver Letter

If the company owned assets when it was dissolved, a bona vacantia waiver letter may be required. When a company is dissolved, its remaining property and rights can pass to the Crown as bona vacantia meaning ownerless property. Government guidance identifies assets such as property, land, shares and intellectual property among the assets that can be affected.

Companies House states that where a company's property or rights became bona vacantia, the restoration application needs a written statement from a Crown representative consenting to restoration. This is known as the bona vacantia waiver letter. The former director or shareholder is responsible for obtaining the waiver. The current published fee for the Treasury Solicitor's waiver application is £64.

What counts as an asset?

Do not check only the company's bank account. Potential assets can include:

• Cash
• Shares in another company
• Land or buildings
• Intellectual property
• Trademarks
• Registered designs
• Patents
• Mortgages
• Leasehold interests
• Money owed to the company
• Other legal rights

For a technology startup, for example, the company's most valuable asset may be intellectual property rather than cash. This is why a proper asset review should happen before the RT01 package is submitted.

5. Supporting Evidence May Be Required

Most straightforward administrative restoration applications do not require a large bundle of additional evidence. However, the exact circumstances of the company's dissolution can create additional requirements.

Companies House's current restoration guidance says supporting evidence may be needed where the company was struck off under certain statutory provisions, including section 1002A of the Companies Act 2006. The evidence must address why the Registrar did not have reasonable cause to believe the relevant statutory circumstances existed.

Additional evidence can therefore become important where the company was removed from the register for reasons connected with its registered office or other regulatory circumstances. The practical lesson is simple: Do not assume every restoration application has an identical document checklist. The company's dissolution history matters.

Documents Needed for Court Restoration

If administrative restoration is unavailable, the process changes substantially. For restoration in England and Wales, GOV.UK states that an applicant can use form N208, Claim to Restore a Company by Court Order.

1. Form N208

N208 starts the court process. The form should identify the company, explain the basis of the claim and provide the information required by the court. Unlike administrative restoration, this is litigation-related paperwork, so accuracy and supporting evidence become more important.

2. Witness statement

A witness statement containing the supporting information required by the restoration procedure must accompany the application. This is not merely a cover letter. The statement should provide the court with the relevant facts explaining why restoration is sought and the circumstances surrounding the company's dissolution. Depending on the case, this can include information about:

• The company's history
• Why it was dissolved
• The applicant's connection to the company
• Any assets discovered after dissolution
• Outstanding liabilities
• Why restoration is necessary
• Relevant correspondence or events

For complex cases, professional legal assistance can be particularly valuable.

3. Court fee

The current GOV.UK guidance states that the court application requires a £326 court fee in England and Wales. This is separate from Companies House's £341 administrative restoration fee because the two figures relate to different restoration routes. Fees can change, so applicants should verify the current amount before submitting.

4. Supporting documents and evidence

The court may require documents supporting the facts set out in the claim and witness statement. For example, if restoration is being requested because the company still owns a property, relevant ownership evidence may become important. If the company is being restored because money is owed to it, documentation supporting that claim may be relevant. The exact evidence will depend on the case.

Documents for Restoration in Scotland and Northern Ireland

The UK does not operate one identical court procedure for every jurisdiction. For Scotland, GOV.UK states that restoration applications can involve the Court of Session or the relevant sheriff court, depending on the company's circumstances. A petition to restore must also be served on the Registrar of Companies and any other parties required by the court.

For Northern Ireland, restoration involves an originating summons and supporting witness statement, with documents also sent to the Registrar of Companies as required. This matters for global founders who may think “UK company restoration” means one universal process. The correct documents depend partly on where the company is registered and which legal procedure applies.

A Practical Document Checklist

Before starting the restoration process, create a simple restoration folder containing the following.

For administrative restoration

• Companies House company number
• Company name
• Dissolution date
• Completed RT01
• Outstanding accounts
• Outstanding confirmation statements
• Other required company documents
• Outstanding filing fees
• Applicable late filing penalties
• Bona vacantia waiver, if required
• £341 restoration fee
• Any additional evidence required by Companies House

For court restoration

• Company details and dissolution information
• Completed N208
• Witness statement
• Supporting evidence
• £326 court fee in England and Wales
• Documents required for service
• Evidence relating to assets, debts or other reasons for restoration where relevant

This checklist is useful because the most common restoration problems are often administrative rather than complicated legal issues: missing filings, incorrect information, forgotten assets or incomplete supporting documents.

What If the Company Had Assets?

This is where restoration becomes more than a Companies House filing exercise. Suppose a UK company was dissolved after the founder stopped trading. Six months later, the founder discovers that the company still owns £12,000 in a bank account and shares worth £30,000 in another business. Those assets may have become bona vacantia when the company was dissolved.

If the company qualifies for administrative restoration, the founder will generally need to address the bona vacantia position by obtaining the appropriate waiver before submitting the complete restoration application. After restoration, further steps may be required to recover cash or other assets that were dealt with by the Bona Vacantia Division. The Government Legal Department provides an RA15 procedure for applying for repayment after a company has been restored. So there can be three separate stages:

1. Obtain Crown consent where required.

2. Restore the company.

3. Recover or regularise assets that passed as bona vacantia.

Do not assume that obtaining the waiver automatically releases money from a frozen bank account.

What Happens After the Documents Are Submitted?

For administrative restoration, Companies House considers the application and supporting documents. If the application is successful, Companies House restores the company and sends confirmation. Restoration generally has an important legal effect: the company is treated as having continued in existence as though it had not been dissolved or struck off, subject to the statutory rules governing restoration. That does not mean every practical issue disappears immediately. The restored company may still need to:

• Update its registered office information
• Bring statutory filings up to date
• Resolve banking issues
• Deal with tax matters
• Recover assets
• Review contracts
• Correct ownership records
• Resume proper company administration

Restoration is therefore the beginning of putting the company's affairs back into order, not necessarily the end of the process.

Common Mistakes When Preparing Restoration Documents

Mistake 1: Using RT01 when court restoration is required

If the directors voluntarily applied for strike-off, administrative restoration is not the appropriate route.

Mistake 2: Forgetting the waiver letter

If company property became bona vacantia, Companies House requires the relevant waiver for administrative restoration.

Mistake 3: Checking only the bank account

A company can have no cash and still own shares, intellectual property, property or other rights.

Mistake 4: Ignoring old filings

Restoration does not automatically make outstanding accounts and confirmation statements irrelevant.

Mistake 5: Treating restoration as an asset-recovery application

Restoring the company and recovering assets previously dealt with as bona vacantia can involve separate steps.

Mistake 6: Using outdated fees or forms

Companies House updated the RT01 fee to £341 in February 2026. Always check the current government guidance before submitting documents.

How Global Founders Can Prepare for Restoration

International founders often discover restoration problems after a UK company has been inactive for months or years. A company may have stopped trading but still have:

• A UK bank account
• Intellectual property
• Shares in another company
• Outstanding customer payments
• Tax matters
• Contracts
• Digital assets

For founders managing UK entities from overseas, maintaining a clear corporate records folder can make a future restoration significantly easier. That folder should contain copies of Companies House filings, accounts, shareholder information, asset records, banking correspondence and important contracts.

IncorpUK operates as a UK company formation and management platform for global founders, and this type of corporate record-keeping is particularly relevant where the people managing the company are based outside the UK.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the main document needed to restore a UK company?

For eligible administrative restoration, the main application is form RT01. You will also need outstanding company documents, applicable fees and penalties, and a bona vacantia waiver where the company had relevant assets.

Do I need a bona vacantia waiver to restore every company?

No. The waiver is relevant where the dissolved company's property or rights became bona vacantia. Companies House requires the waiver as part of administrative restoration where applicable.

What is the current fee to restore a company administratively?

The current Companies House fee for administrative restoration is £341.

What documents are needed for court restoration?

In England and Wales, the process generally involves form N208, a witness statement, the £326 court fee and supporting information or evidence relevant to the restoration claim.

Can I restore a company that I voluntarily struck off?

Not through administrative restoration. Companies House states that administrative restoration is unavailable where the directors voluntarily applied for strike-off. Court restoration may be available instead.

Do I need old company accounts?

Potentially, yes. Companies House requires outstanding documents needed to bring the company's record up to date, including accounts and confirmation statements where applicable.

What happens to company assets after restoration?

Restoration can reverse the bona vacantia position for property that remains affected, but if an asset has already been disposed of, the consequences can be different. The Government Legal Department has a separate process for certain repayments after restoration.

How long do I have to restore a dissolved company?

Administrative restoration is generally available only within six years of dissolution, provided the other statutory conditions are satisfied. Court restoration also has statutory time limits, although specific circumstances can affect how those limits operate.

Conclusion

The documents required to restore a UK company depend first on the restoration route. For eligible administrative restoration, the essential package is built around RT01, outstanding company filings, applicable fees and penalties, and a bona vacantia waiver where the company had assets. The current Companies House fee is £341.

If administrative restoration is unavailable, the process can move to court, where N208, a witness statement, court fees and supporting evidence become central to the application. The safest approach is to establish the company's dissolution history first, identify every asset that may have remained behind, check its outstanding filing obligations and then build the document package around the correct restoration route.

For founders, especially those managing UK companies from overseas, good records can make the difference between a straightforward restoration and a prolonged recovery exercise. Before submitting anything, check the latest Companies House and GOV.UK guidance because forms, fees and procedural requirements can change.