We have a 100% success rate with this application in the District Court if unfortunately you have been late with your CRO returns and are at risk of losing audit exemption and the payment of late filing fees please let us know and we will assess your case immediately and give you best options.
The advantages of making this application in the District Court is that the court allocates you an new Annual Return Date, CRO ARD and this allows for the filing of outstanding annual returns directly into the CRO without the need for late filing fees which are maxed out at €3,600 in respect of 3 years and the company retains audit exemption provided it was up-to-date with its statutory returns and didn’t pay a late filing fee with the last CRO annual return filed.
The new Companies Act 2025 allows you be late with your CRO return for just one year without losing audit exemption provided you have been compliant with the previous 5 years and were never late during that period or paid the late filing fee. However, the relevant section in the Companies Act is still awaiting commencement order so this proposed new remedy is not yet available. It is only suitable for companies that are in arrears for one year. So if you are in arrears for 2 or more years you may need to look at the options available with the CRO District Court application.
Description
The CRO PROSECUTION AND INVOLUNTARY STRIKE OFF CAMPAIGN
The CRO has had a moratorium on prosecution and listing companies for involuntary strike or for nonf-iling of statutory returns for nearly 5 years now since the beginning of the Covid 19 pandemic in March 2020. However, the CRO have started listing companies again for involuntary strike of and in particular for non-filing of the relevant information with regard to directors. It is inevitable that this CRO enforcement campaign will intensify over the next few months and companies at risk of being struck off should review their options with the CRO District Court Application.
Once the District Court Application is made to the court and a hearing date for the application allocated, the CRO are formally served with the court documentation and their letter of stance is sought and in such circumstances the CRO will not take any further action against the company by way of prosecution or strike off until the matter is dealt with in the District Court.
Please contact Carol Walker at the Company Shop to discuss your options and the benefits of bringing a CRO District Court Application.
