{
  "url": "https://openlegislation.uk/insolvency-northern-ireland-order-1989/article-167",
  "json_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/insolvency-northern-ireland-order-1989/article-167.json",
  "legislation": "nisi/1989/2405",
  "legislation_title": "The Insolvency (Northern Ireland) Order 1989",
  "legislation_url": "https://openlegislation.uk/insolvency-northern-ireland-order-1989",
  "path": "article/167",
  "kind": "article",
  "number": "167",
  "heading": "Early dissolution",
  "text": "(1) Where an order for the winding up of a company has been made by the High Court, the official receiver, if—\n(a) he is the liquidator of the company, and\n(b) it appears to him—\n(i) that the realisable assets of the company are insufficient to cover the expenses of the winding up, and\n(ii) that the affairs of the company do not require any further investigation,\nmay at any time apply to the registrar for the early dissolution of the company.\n(1A) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .\n(1B) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .\n(2) Before making that application, the official receiver shall give not less than 28 days' notice of his intention to do so to the company's creditors and contributories and, if there is an administrative receiver of the company, to that receiver.\n(3) With the giving of that notice the official receiver ceases (subject to any directions under Article 168) to be required toperform any duties imposed on him in relation to the company, its creditors or contributories by virtue of any provision of this Order, apart from a duty to make an application under paragraph (1) ....\n(4) On the receipt of the official receiver's application under paragraph (1) ... the registrar shall forthwith register it ... and, subject to paragraph (7), at the expiration of 3 months from the day of the registration of the application, the company shall be dissolved ....\n(5) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .\n(6) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .\n(7) The Department may, on the application of the official receiver or any other person who appears to the Department to be interested, give directions under Article 168 at any time before the end of that period.",
  "extent": null,
  "status": null,
  "version": "current",
  "annotations": [
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F1",
      "text": "Art. 167(1A)(1B) omitted (31.12.2020) by virtue of The Insolvency (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (S.I. 2019/146), reg. 1(3), Sch. para. 173(2) (with regs. 4, 5); 2020 c. 1, Sch. 5 para. 1(1)"
    },
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F2",
      "text": "Words in art. 167(2) substituted (31.12.2020) by The Insolvency (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (S.I. 2019/146), reg. 1(3), Sch. para. 173(3) (with regs. 4, 5); 2020 c. 1, Sch. 5 para. 1(1)"
    },
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F3",
      "text": "Words in art. 167(3) omitted (31.12.2020) by virtue of The Insolvency (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (S.I. 2019/146), reg. 1(3), Sch. para. 173(4) (with regs. 4, 5); 2020 c. 1, Sch. 5 para. 1(1)"
    },
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F4",
      "text": "Words in art. 167(4) omitted (31.12.2020) by virtue of The Insolvency (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (S.I. 2019/146), reg. 1(3), Sch. para. 173(5)(a) (with regs. 4, 5); 2020 c. 1, Sch. 5 para. 1(1)"
    },
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F5",
      "text": "Words in art. 167(4) substituted (31.12.2020) by The Insolvency (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (S.I. 2019/146), reg. 1(3), Sch. para. 173(5)(b) (with regs. 4, 5); 2020 c. 1, Sch. 5 para. 1(1)"
    },
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F6",
      "text": "Words in art. 167(4) omitted (31.12.2020) by virtue of The Insolvency (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (S.I. 2019/146), reg. 1(3), Sch. para. 173(5)(c) (with regs. 4, 5); 2020 c. 1, Sch. 5 para. 1(1)"
    },
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F7",
      "text": "Art. 167(5)(6) omitted (31.12.2020) by virtue of The Insolvency (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (S.I. 2019/146), reg. 1(3), Sch. para. 173(6) (with regs. 4, 5); 2020 c. 1, Sch. 5 para. 1(1)"
    },
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F8",
      "text": "Art. 167(7): art. 167(5) renumbered as art. 167(7) (26.6.2017) by The Insolvency Amendment (EU 2015/848) Regulations 2017 (S.I. 2017/702), reg. 1, Sch. para. 105(5)(c) (with reg. 3)"
    },
    {
      "type": "F",
      "label": "F9",
      "text": "Words in art. 167(7) substituted (31.12.2020) by The Insolvency (Amendment) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019 (S.I. 2019/146), reg. 1(3), Sch. para. 173(7) (with regs. 4, 5); 2020 c. 1, Sch. 5 para. 1(1)"
    }
  ],
  "outstanding_effects": [
    {
      "type": "words inserted",
      "affecting": "nia/2026/6",
      "affecting_title": "Insolvency (Amendment) Act (Northern Ireland) 2026"
    }
  ],
  "provenance": {
    "source": "legislation.gov.uk",
    "source_url": "https://www.legislation.gov.uk/nisi/1989/2405/article/167",
    "retrieved_at": "2026-10-29T04:47:04.938020+00:00"
  },
  "licence": "Open Government Licence v3.0",
  "licence_url": "https://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3/",
  "attribution": "Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Source: legislation.gov.uk, The National Archives."
}