Companies House
Got a First Gazette notice? Here's how to stop it
Most notices mean something is overdue, usually the accounts or the confirmation statement, and it can usually be fixed. Work out your objection deadline, then follow the 7-day fix plan below.
What does a First Gazette notice for compulsory strike-off mean?
7-day fix plan
What to do this week
None of this is complicated, but it needs doing before your objection window closes.
Look up what's overdue
Search the company's number on our company deadlines page to see what Companies House is waiting on.
File what's overdue
Usually the annual accounts or the confirmation statement. Getting these filed removes the reason for the notice.
Object to the strike-off
Use the online objection service and say why the company should stay on the register.
Contact whoever else objected
If HMRC or someone else has also objected, find out why and deal with that too.
Check the register again
Confirm the company's status has changed and the strike-off action has stopped.
Put every date in a calendar
So the next confirmation statement or accounts deadline doesn't catch you out the same way.
Why this happened
Why you got the notice
Companies House sends a First Gazette notice when its records suggest a company isn't carrying on business. In practice that almost always means one thing is overdue: the annual accounts, the confirmation statement, or both. Nothing sinister has to have happened, it's usually a filing that slipped past a busy director.
Not every notice means Companies House is acting on its own. A company can also be struck off voluntarily, when a director applies for it to close down. A voluntary strike-off notice looks similar in The Gazette, but it means someone asked for this, rather than the register flagging a missing filing. If you didn't apply for this, treat it as the compulsory kind and act on the plan above.
If nothing is done
What happens if the company is struck off
If the notice period passes with no objection and no fix, the company is dissolved: it stops legally existing. Its bank accounts are frozen, and anything it still owns, cash, property, unpaid invoices, passes to the Crown (bona vacantia) rather than staying with the former directors or shareholders.
You can still get the company back, but it's a slower process than objecting now: you'd need to apply to restore a dissolved company. It's almost always simpler to deal with the notice while the company is still on the register.
Objecting
How to object
Objections are made online, using the Companies House strike-off objections service. You'll need a Companies House account, and the service usually takes around 15 minutes. From 1 December 2026, objections must be made online only: Companies House no longer accepts them by email.
Objecting buys time, it doesn't fix the underlying problem on its own. Pair it with filing whatever's overdue, so the notice doesn't simply reappear once the objection period ends.
If you'd rather close it
If you want the company closed
Not every notice needs fighting. If the company genuinely isn't trading and you're happy to let it go, you don't have to object at all, though it's worth doing it on your own terms rather than leaving loose ends. See closing a limited company: your options and the dormant company guide if you'd rather keep it on the register without trading.
Questions
Strike-off notices, answered
What is a First Gazette notice for compulsory strike-off?
It's a public notice Companies House publishes in The Gazette when it believes a company isn't carrying on business, usually because its accounts or confirmation statement are overdue. It starts a clock: if nobody objects and the missing filings aren't sorted out, the company can be struck off the register and dissolved.
What does compulsory strike off mean?
It's Companies House removing a company from the register on its own initiative, rather than a director applying to close it voluntarily. It's usually triggered by overdue filings.
How do I stop a compulsory strike off?
File whatever's overdue, usually the accounts or the confirmation statement, and object to the strike-off using the online objection service, explaining what you've done. Doing both together is the fastest way to get the company off the strike-off list.
How do I object to a strike off?
Online only, using the Companies House strike-off objections service. You need a Companies House account, and it usually takes around 15 minutes. From 1 December 2026, objections can only be made this way: email is no longer accepted.
My company is being struck off, what do I do?
Don't panic. Look up the company number to see what's overdue, get it filed, and object to the strike-off within 2 months of the notice date. Most notices are fixable if you act before the deadline.
What happens if my company is struck off by Companies House?
The company is dissolved: it stops legally existing. Its bank accounts are frozen and anything it still owns passes to the Crown (bona vacantia). To carry on trading under that company, you'd need to apply to restore it, which is a slower and more involved process than objecting to the notice now.
How long do I have to object to a strike-off notice?
2 months from the date of the notice in The Gazette. Use the date field above to see your exact deadline.
Can HMRC object to my company being struck off?
Yes. HMRC and other creditors or interested parties can object too, often because of unpaid tax or an open investigation. If someone other than you has objected, you'll usually need to resolve that with them directly before the strike-off action stops.
Sources, checked on
- Strike off your company from the Companies Register
- Object to a limited company being struck off
- Strike-off objections service
- Objections to company strike off go online only from 1 December 2026
- Restore a dissolved company
General guidance, not advice for your situation. Rules change: always check the GOV.UK page before you act.
Never see another strike-off notice
Finn tracks your Companies House deadlines and reminds you well before anything is overdue.