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
If a corporation is reinstated, the CATSI Act says the directors who were in place at the time of the corporation’s deregistration are the directors when the corporation was reinstated. A change of officer form should be lodged if there has been a change to the corporation’s directors.
The CATSI Act also says when a corporation is reinstated:
- the corporation is taken to have continued to exist during the time it was deregistered
- property that became vested with the Registrar when the corporation was deregistered returns to the corporation
- if the corporation held property that was subject to a security or other interest, the corporation takes the property subject to that security or other interest.
When a deregistered corporation can be reinstated
Court ordered reinstatement
The Registrar will not reinstate a corporation that has been ordered to be wound up by the court unless the court orders it.
The court may order the Registrar to reinstate a corporation if:
- an application for reinstatement is made to the court by:
- a person aggrieved by the deregistration
- a former liquidator of the corporation
- the court is satisfied that the corporation’s registration should be reinstated.
If the court makes a reinstatement order, it may confirm anything done between deregistration and reinstatement of the corporation and make any other order it considers appropriate. For example, an order for the Registrar to transfer vested property.
Reinstatement by the Registrar
The Registrar can reinstate a corporation if it should not have been deregistered.
The decision to deregister a corporation is not taken lightly by the Registrar. It is action taken when a corporation is not meeting its obligations under the CATSI Act.
When considering a request to reinstate a corporation, the Registrar will take into account:
- if the corporation would be able to meet its obligations under the CATSI Act if it was reinstated
- if the corporation continued to carry on business during the period it was deregistered
- if it would be more appropriate to register a new corporation rather than reinstate the deregistered corporation.
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
- proof that your corporation has been carrying on business for the time it was deregistered.
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 Gazette.
We’ll also get in touch with the person who asked for the corporation to be reinstated. We will ask for all outstanding reports for the corporation to be lodged within 28 days of being reinstated. If your corporation is unable to lodge all outstanding reports, ORIC will consider taking regulatory action.