Stopping is not closing
This is the misunderstanding that costs the most.
A company that carries on no activity still exists and still carries obligations: annual accounts, filings, maintaining an address. Not filing does not end the obligation, it accumulates penalties.
It is especially common with foreign owners who registered a company solely to hold a property. The company did its job fifteen years ago, and nobody ever closed it.
Liquidation has its own sequence
It is not a single application. It runs through a resolution, an entry, the appointment of a liquidator, a period for creditors to come forward, settling the accounts, and only then deregistration.
There is a period in which creditors may present claims, and it cannot be skipped. So the procedure takes months rather than days.
Before you start
What has accumulated gets checked. Sometimes it turns out that old filings and liabilities must be settled before liquidation, and sometimes that the company holds a property which has to be dealt with before deregistration.
If the company holds property, that is a separate decision: sell the property, sell the shares, or transfer it before closing. Each carries a different cost. See property held by a company.
If the liabilities exceed the assets
Then the route is not liquidation but another one, and that affects the manager’s own exposure. If you suspect that is the position, say so at the start.
If you are abroad
You do not need to come. It is handled through a power of attorney. The trips it saves are usually more than one.
What I will need
The company’s current entry, the most recent accounts filed if you know which those are, and information about assets and liabilities. Any letter from the revenue authority or a bailiff as well.
This page provides general information and does not constitute legal advice on any specific case. Rights and deadlines depend on the facts and the applicable law.