The latest CRO Stakeholder Forum took place this week and included a number of operational updates from the Companies Registration Office.
Processing times for new company incorporations have improved, with applications currently taking approximately six working days to be processed. While this remains slightly outside the CRO’s five-day service target, it represents an improvement on recent months.
Annual return processing times have also improved and are now typically taking 12 to 14 working days. This is welcome news ahead of the upcoming peak filing season, with approximately 56,000 companies facing an annual return deadline of 25th November 2026.
On the enforcement front, the CRO confirmed that it is currently targeting approximately 1,000 companies per week for strike-off action. Around 10% of non-compliant companies, representing more than 3,000 companies, have already been struck off. The CRO expects the post-Covid enforcement backlog to be substantially cleared by Q2/Q3 2027, meaning many companies that have fallen behind on their compliance obligations may face an increased risk of enforcement action over the coming months.
The CRO also confirmed that, under current legislative requirements, all automated email correspondence must issue in Irish first, with limited scope for the CRO to alter this approach.
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Disclaimer: This article is for guidance purposes only. It does not constitute legal or professional advice. No liability is accepted by Company Bureau for any action taken or not taken in reliance on the information set out in this article. Professional or legal advice should be obtained before taking or refraining from any action as a result of this article. Any and all information is subject to change.
