Liquidation of companies in Ukraine
The liquidation of a company is the termination of the activity of an enterprise without the transfer of rights and obligations to a successor, as is the case with the reorganization of an enterprise. The largest liquidation procedure is defined by law for limited liability companies (LLC), additional liability companies (ALC) and joint stock companies (JSC). Least of all – for private enterprises (PE).
An enterprise can be liquidated:
- by an independent decision of its participants or an enterprise body authorized to do so by a constituent document, for example, the articles of association (self-liquidation). The reasons may be different: economic, achievement of the activity purpose, circumstances determined by the articles of association, etc. (the basis is p. “1”, part 1, Art, 110 of the Civil Code of Ukraine). Among the possible formal reasons is also the non-fulfillment of the limit on net assets, its decrease in LLC by more than 50% compared to the previous year (part 3 of Art. 31 of the Law on LLC). There is also the rule for joint stock companies – liquidation if net assets are less than the size of the authorized capital (part 3 of Art. 155 of the Civil Code);
- by a court judgment.The procedure is similar, but the judgment here is made by the court, and the liquidation commission is also appointed by the court;
- liquidation in the case of bankruptcy of an enterprise, which can be initiated both by the court, for example, on the recommendation of a creditor, and by the owner of the enterprise.Its purpose is to close debentures to creditors by selling the company property.
Procedure for liquidation of companies
If you decide to liquidate the company, then you will need to go through the following stages:
- Making decision by the owner (participants or shareholders) on the termination of the existence of a legal entity.
- Notification of the state registration authority of the commencement of the liquidation procedure.
- Notification of regulatory authorities about the beginning of the liquidation procedure.
- Identifying creditors and notifying them of the commencement of the liquidation procedure.
- Sale of assets, settlements with all creditors, drawing up a liquidation balance sheet.
- Dismissal of employees.
- Closing of bank accounts, cancellation of certificates, permits and exclusion from registers.
- Inspection by the regulatory authority.
- Obtaining certificates from the SFSU and the PFU.
- Transfer of documents to archival institutions, destruction of seals and stamps.
- Entering information on the termination of a legal entity in the Unified State Register.
Documents required for liquidation of a company
It is important that the decision to liquidate a legal entity contains:
- data on the personal composition of the termination commission (liquidation commission), its head or liquidator (if he acts alone);
- registration numbers of taxpayers’ accounting cards (ITN) of each member of the liquidation commission or liquidator (or information about the series and number of the passport – for individuals who, due to their religious beliefs, refused to accept the registration number of a taxpayer’s accounting card, notified the relevant regulatory authority and have a mark in the passport on the right to make payments according to the series and number of the passport);
- information on the procedure and term for the submission of creditors’ claims (at least two months).
If the decision (minutes) does not contain data, the state registrar may refuse to accept it.
Also note that the liquidation procedure itself is quite laborious, and therefore requires high-quality legal support. In particular, during the liquidation procedure, attention should be paid to the need to identify creditors and notify the start of the liquidation procedure of the company. After analyzing the accounting data and other documents of the company, it is necessary to identify creditors and send them appropriate notices with a proposal to send their claims.
In addition, it is important to pay attention to the process of selling the company assets, settlements with all creditors, and drawing up a liquidation balance sheet.
It should be noted that the main point before the assets sale is an inventory, property appraisal.
Satisfying the creditors’ claims also includes making all settlements for the payment of taxes, duties, a single contribution and insurance premiums. If assets remain after settlements with creditors, it is necessary to make settlements with the participants (owners, shareholders) of the company.
It is very difficult to predict the terms of the company liquidation. The period for creditors to file their claims against a legal entity terminating its activities cannot be less than two months (part 5 of Art. 105 of the Civil Code of Ukraine), which determines the minimum liquidation period. In addition, government audits, the sale of the company assets, the collection of receivables and payables, and many other liquidation-related activities can take more than two months.