Insolvency by the Numbers #61: NZ Insolvency Statistics Year End 2025 and January 2026 What have the insolvency numbers done in 2025 along with January 2026, at the same time we take a look at what could be instore for the rest of the 2026 for personal and corporate insolvency. Winding Up Applications Surprising no one based on how the first 11 months of 2025 were tracking we finished the year with 1289 winding up applications for the year, well above any of the past 5 years and reinforcing that we are yet to see the end of the pressure businesses are facing. The January monthly total was 115 applications, slightly down on the 2025 total of 130 application. This…

Solvent Liquidations Explained In our experience, one of the most common misconceptions directors and shareholders hold is that liquidation is only relevant when a business is failing. In reality, many New Zealand companies are wound up while fully able to meet all of their obligations. A solvent liquidation is simply a structured and legally robust way to bring a company’s affairs to an orderly close when it has served its purpose. A solvent liquidation applies where the company can pay all of its debts, including interest, within 12 months. We typically see solvent liquidations where a company has sold its business or has ceased trading, a project or investment vehicle has run its course or a group is simplifying its…

Incorporated Societies: the April 2026 cliff edge under the Incorporated Societies Act 2022 From 5 April 2026, every society still on the register under the Incorporated Societies Act 1908 must have made a deliberate choice: re‑register under the Incorporated Societies Act 2022, wind up properly, or accept that it will be struck off and will cease to exist as an incorporated society. The Companies Office has been clear that re‑registration is not automatic and that societies that miss the deadline will simply no longer exist in their incorporated form. If your society does nothing, it stops existing If your society takes no action by 5 April 2026, it will be removed from the register and will no longer have a…

What has happened with the insolvency stats during November 2025 when compared with the last few years for personal and corporate insolvency ahead of the Christmas break. Winding Up Applications Winding up applications for November 2025 took off like a shot on the back of IRD chasing a group of 45 sushi companies with common stakeholders. Even with the 45 group winding up applications removed the monthly total would remain well above previous November highs and only slightly down on the highs seen so far throughout 2025. The monthly total was 167 applications the highest in the last 6 years , these applications are now starting to be advertised with February court dates reinforcing the courts will be pumping into…

Liquidation of Charities or Not for Profit’s Many Charities and NFP organisations are facing reduced income as a result of the current economic conditions and government changes to grants making fund raising more difficult. We thought it was timely to look at the steps to take when a charity is no longer able to meet its intended purpose and mission statement. There are several critical steps and legal obligations a Charity must consider to wind up responsibly and protect its charitable status: Legal and Governance Considerations Review the charity’s rules or trust deed: Most registered charities have a wind-up clause that outlines how assets should be distributed and what procedures must be followed. Comply with the Charities Act 2005: Officers…

The Risks of Surrendering Business Assets to the Landlord Before Liquidation. It’s becoming increasingly common for business owners when they get themselves into financial trouble to close the doors and walk away. From the landlord’s perspective this can be ideal as they get left with a site that may be easier to lease due to existing fixtures and fittings for a similar type of business. They may have had to sacrifice some unpaid rent and a personal guarantee to gain control of the assets. From the director’s perspective they often see this as a solution where they can remove an ongoing obligation for the rest of the lease term and get out of a personal guarantee. The issues arises when…

Insolvency by the Numbers #59: NZ Insolvency Statistics October 2025 We take a look at what happened in the insolvency figures during October 2025 when compared with the last few years for personal and corporate insolvency. Winding Up Applications Winding up applications for October 2025 took a slight drop of 1 application from last months highs to remain the 2nd highest they have been in the last 5 years, showing we will indeed be in for a big end to the year for creditor enforced liquidations and liquidations overall. 2025 continues to easily exceed 2024 in total numbers and looks on track to exceed 1,200 applications with 2 months left to run in the year. The ongoing strong levels of…

What Documents Are Creditors Entitled to in a Liquidation? When a company goes into liquidation, creditors have certain legal rights to access documents for the purpose of helping stakeholders understand what’s happening, assess their chances of seeing a recovery on what they are entitled to, and to hold insolvency practitioners accountable when dealing with the assets of the company. What documents can creditors see? Creditors entitlements to documents in a liquidation are set out across a number of acts, these include the Companies Act, Liquidation Regulations, Insolvency Practitioners Regulations and Companies (Reporting by Insolvency Practitioners) Regulations. Creditors are entitled to: Notice of appointment confirmation that the company has entered liquidation including date and time, details of who made the appointment…

Employee Claims in Liquidation: How are Related Party Employee Claims Treated? When a company enters liquidation, one of the liquidator’s key responsibilities is to assess and distribute the company’s remaining assets to creditors in accordance with the Companies Act 1993. Among the creditors, employees are granted preferential status for outstanding wages, holiday pay and redundancy if they are entitled to it under their employment agreement. The situation becomes more complex when the employee is related to a director of the company. Normal Treatment of Employee Claims in Liquidation Under Schedule 7 of the Companies Act 1993, employees are entitled to preferential claims for: Wages and salaries (including commissions and piecework) earned in the four months prior to liquidation. Holiday pay…

We take a look at what happened with the NZ insolvency figures during September 2025 when compared with the previous years for personal and corporate insolvency. Winding Up Applications Winding up applications for September 2025 were the highest they have been in the last 5 years hinting as a big end to the year for creditor enforced liquidations and liquidations overall. 2025 continues to easily exceed 2024 in total numbers and looks on track to exceed 1,200 applications. The continued growth in winding up applications reinforces that the market remains under pressure and creditors continue to default on payments and are facing serious collection issues. IRD maintains the pressure it has been putting on delinquent companies to catch up on…

To have a meaningful discussion and put a plan in place, it helps to have the important information ahead of time. This allows us to give you a steer on your options and advise on what will likely get the best outcome for stakeholders. So, what do we look for and why? Creditor List To understand the level of company debt and the class of each creditor. If there are secured creditors, we’ll want to know what assets they may be entitled to under a General Security Agreement (GSA) or Purchase Money Security Interest (PMSI), and whether any assets need to be returned to suppliers with valid claims. If we look to trade the business on it is important to…

We take a look at what happened in the insolvency figures during August 2025 when compared with the last few years for personal and corporate insolvency. Winding Up Applications Winding up applications for August 2025 were slightly above last years August, with just one advertised winding up application more. Overall, 2025 continues to exceed 2024. Looking at this on a month by month bases we can see in the year to date that this excess was driven by the higher January, February and March we saw at the start of the year, traditionally these have been slower months. IRD smashed our 93 of the 119 applications for the month, that’s a huge 78.15%, well above the long term average of…