How to Check if a Company Is in Receivership in 2026

Updated 12 May 2026. Before granting payment terms, signing a framework contract, extending a credit line or responding to a tender with a subcontractor, you need to verify whether the target company is under a collective procedure. The 2026 method relies on seven public sources to master (BODACC, Infogreffe, Pappers, Société.com, INSEE Sirene, commercial court registries, French tax authority), three public collective procedures to distinguish (safeguard, receivership, judicial liquidation) and two confidential preventive procedures to anticipate (ad hoc mandate, conciliation). The director themselves has 45 days to file for cessation of payments from its onset (Article L631-4 of the Commercial Code) — beyond that deadline, they face personal sanctions. Cabinet Hayot Expertise in Paris delivers the complete legal and operational reading.

BODACC — mandatory legal publication#

The Bulletin Officiel des Annonces Civiles et Commerciales (bodacc.fr) is the first legal reference. Article L143-22 of the Commercial Code requires the publication in BODACC of every opening, conversion, plan, sale or closure judgment of a collective procedure, within 15 days of the decision. Consultation is free, by corporate name, SIREN or city. BODACC distinguishes three categories of notices: A (incorporations), B (modifications), C (collective procedures). Mind two limitations: publication can take 7 to 15 days after the judgment, and preventive procedures (ad hoc mandate, non-homologated conciliation) do not appear — see below.

Infogreffe, Pappers, Société.com, INSEE Sirene#

Infogreffe.fr is the official portal of French commercial court registries. It provides legal form, status (active, struck off, in procedure), current directors, filed annual accounts and — crucially — mention of any ongoing collective procedures with the judgment date and competent court. Identity sheets are free; Kbis extracts (€3-4 each) and full accounts (€4-7) are paid. Pappers.fr aggregates Infogreffe, BODACC and INSEE for free, with a superior interface, built-in risk scoring and an API useful for finance departments that want to industrialise third-party monitoring. Société.com offers a comparable service with financial indicators and scoring. INSEE Sirene (api.insee.fr and sirene.fr) provides administrative status (active / ceased), evolution history and NAF/APE activity code. Cross-checking these sources is decisive: a company still flagged "active" at INSEE but with a "receivership" mention on Infogreffe is under procedure — INSEE reflects cessation only after effective deletion.

Commercial court and tax administration#

The territorially competent commercial court remains the ultimate reference source. The registry's "Hearing search" service tracks ongoing procedures case by case. For civil-law companies, the tribunal judiciaire has jurisdiction. More rarely, the RCS status notice issued by the tax administration can be consulted to confirm administrative status. To build robust monitoring across a portfolio of clients or suppliers, you can combine these sources within our outsourced CFO service, which industrialises third-party risk monitoring.

Safeguard (Articles L620-1 to L626-3 of the Commercial Code)#

The safeguard procedure, codified in Articles L620-1 to L626-3 of the Commercial Code, is open to a company facing difficulties it cannot overcome on its own, but not yet in cessation of payments. Only the director can request its opening. The court opens a 6-month observation period, renewable once, capped at 12 months (18 months in exceptional cases). During this period, prior creditor actions are suspended and the company prepares a safeguard plan lasting up to 10 years. Safeguard is a public procedure (published in BODACC) but carries less stigma than receivership, because the company is not in cessation of payments. An accelerated safeguard also exists (Article L628-1 CC) lasting 3 months, reserved for cases where a draft plan is already negotiated within a prior conciliation.

Receivership (Articles L631-1 to L631-22 of the Commercial Code)#

Receivership (redressement judiciaire, RJ), codified in Articles L631-1 to L631-22 of the Commercial Code, is open to a company in cessation of payments — inability to meet the payable liabilities with available assets — provided recovery remains possible. The procedure can be opened on the director's request, on a creditor's petition, by the public prosecutor or ex officio by the court. Once opened, the procedure triggers the suspension of individual actions, the appointment of a judicial agent (representing creditors) and, for companies with more than 20 employees or over €3M turnover, of a judicial administrator. The observation period is 6 months renewable, up to 18 months maximum. Three outcomes are possible: a continuation plan (up to 10 years), a sale plan to a third-party buyer (Article L642-1 CC), or conversion into judicial liquidation if recovery is manifestly impossible.

Judicial liquidation (Articles L640-1 to L644-6 of the Commercial Code)#

Judicial liquidation (liquidation judiciaire, LJ), codified in Articles L640-1 to L644-6 of the Commercial Code, is ordered when the company is in cessation of payments and any recovery is manifestly impossible. The director is divested of their powers in favour of a judicial liquidator, who realises the assets to repay creditors according to the priority order (AGS super-privilege on wages, judicial costs, secured creditors, unsecured creditors). Activity ceases immediately, except temporary continuation authorised by the court. Simplified liquidation applies to micro-enterprises (under 5 employees and under €750K turnover) and closes within 6 to 12 months; standard liquidation typically lasts 18 to 24 months. A sale plan (Article L642-1 CC) may be ordered to transfer all or part of the activity to a buyer, preserving jobs and operating value.

Cessation of payments and the 45-day deadline#

Cessation of payments is legally defined as the inability of the company to meet its payable liabilities with its available assets. Payable liabilities cover due, certain, liquid debts; available assets cover cash and immediately mobilisable resources. Article L631-4 of the Commercial Code requires the director to declare cessation to the commercial court registry within 45 days of its onset. Failure to file constitutes a management fault likely to engage the director's personal liability in case of aggravation of liabilities. Solid cash anticipation often helps avoid cessation by activating preventive procedures (ad hoc mandate, conciliation) — you may also consult our analysis of URSSAF audits, one of the most frequent triggers of cessation.

6-month observation period + renewal#

Opening receivership triggers a 6-month observation period, renewable once by court decision, exceptionally extendable on the public prosecutor's request up to 18 months total. This period has a dual function: take stock of the economic, social and patrimonial situation (economic and social assessment prepared by the administrator) and craft the draft plan. During observation, individual actions are frozen, interest stops running on prior claims (except for loans longer than one year), and the director generally continues to manage the company under the administrator's supervision when one is appointed.

Judicial agent, administrator, creditors#

Two essential organs structure the procedure. The judicial agent (mandataire judiciaire) represents the collective interests of creditors: receives their claim declarations, verifies the liabilities and issues opinions to the court. The judicial administrator (mandatory above 20 employees or €3M turnover) assists or represents the director in management, prepares the economic and social assessment and drafts the plan. Prior creditors to the opening judgment must declare their claim within 2 months (4 months for creditors outside metropolitan France) of the BODACC publication, on pain of unenforceability (Article L622-26 CC). Our Paris-based legal advisory service supports suppliers and creditors in securing their declaration.

Ad hoc mandate (Article L611-3 CC)#

The ad hoc mandate, codified in Article L611-3 of the Commercial Code, is a strictly confidential procedure. The director of a company facing difficulties (without being in cessation of payments) requests the president of the commercial court to appoint an ad hoc agent. The mission is freely defined in the appointment order: negotiate with main creditors, restructure debt, find an investor. The duration is not legally framed — it is freely set by the court. No publication occurs, neither in BODACC nor on Infogreffe (beyond a discreet mention sometimes accessible to registries). That is why a supplier can be completely blind to a client under ad hoc mandate.

Conciliation (Articles L611-4 to L611-15 CC)#

Conciliation, codified in Articles L611-4 to L611-15 of the Commercial Code, addresses companies facing actual or foreseeable legal, economic or financial difficulties, and that are not in cessation of payments for more than 45 days. The court president appoints a conciliator for 4 months, renewable once (5 months maximum). The goal is the signature of an amicable agreement with main creditors. The agreement can be acknowledged (binding between parties, confidential) or homologated (limited publication, granting the "new money" privilege of Article L611-11 CC to creditors providing new financing). Conciliation is confidential by default; only homologation produces limited publicity.

Why they do not appear in BODACC#

The legislator deliberately sealed these procedures in secrecy to preserve commercial and banking confidence during the negotiation phase. Publicity would accelerate defaults (loss of suppliers, early acceleration of bank facilities, customer disengagement). Practical consequence: a partner may have been under ad hoc mandate for 6 months without any free public source indicating it. Only indirect signals (change of bank signatory, frozen investments, targeted payment suspensions) reveal it — which justifies the analysis of weak signals.

Coface, FIBEN, Allianz Trade, Atradius scoring#

Credit insurance and rating agencies often anticipate defaults by several months. Coface, Allianz Trade (formerly Euler Hermes) and Atradius publish near-real-time risk scores for their policyholders. The Banque de France feeds FIBEN (Corporate Banking File), accessible to credit institutions, which assigns a credit rating (3++ to 9) reflecting the quality of accounts, compliance with commitments and payment incidents. A sharp downgrade (from 4 to 5+, for example) is a strong leading indicator. Infogreffe also offers built-in scoring.

Registered Treasury and URSSAF privileges#

The registration of a French Treasury privilege or URSSAF privilege at the commercial court registry is public information consultable on Infogreffe. It reveals that the company has accumulated significant arrears in social contributions, VAT, corporate tax, etc., exceeding the regulatory publicity thresholds (€15,000 in general, with variations by debt type). This is one of the most reliable leading indicators of a structural cash flow difficulty.

Late filing of annual accounts#

Late or absent filing of annual accounts at the registry is a major signal. The law requires filing within 7 months of closing (Article R232-19 CC). A repeated lag over several years can signal accounts under arbitration, social disagreement or hidden losses. Our comprehensive analysis of annual accounts filing details the applicable regime and sanctions. Add to these signals frequent leadership changes, marked drop in published revenue, published litigation and cascading defaults in the sector (domino effect).

Declaration of claim under Article L622-24 CC within 2 months#

Article L622-24 of the Commercial Code requires every creditor whose claim arose prior to the opening judgment (or after but not useful to the procedure) to declare their claim to the judicial agent within 2 months of the BODACC publication. The deadline extends to 4 months for creditors domiciled outside metropolitan France. Failure to declare results in unenforceability of the claim against the procedure (Article L622-26 CC): the claim is not legally extinguished, but cannot be paid through the plan. Relief from foreclosure is possible but tightly framed.

Continuation or termination of ongoing contracts#

Article L622-13 of the Commercial Code provides that contracts in progress on the day of the opening judgment can be continued at the judicial administrator's request (or at the debtor's request in the absence of an administrator). The counterparty is required to perform its obligations despite the prior default of payment — a major derogation from common law. Symmetrically, the administrator can decline to continue a contract, automatically terminating it. Claims arising after the judgment and useful to the procedure benefit from the so-called "procedural privilege" (Article L622-17 CC) and are paid by priority.

AGS for unpaid wages#

AGS (Wage Guarantee Scheme) covers wages, severance allowances and paid leave in case of collective procedure. The 2026 caps reach approximately €89,000 per employee for contracts longer than 6 months (4 times the monthly social security cap × 6). AGS advances the amounts to the judicial agent, who disburses them to employees; the scheme then subrogates into the employees' rights vis-à-vis the procedure.

Prohibition to manage and personal bankruptcy#

Articles L653-1 to L653-11 of the Commercial Code organise personal sanctions applicable to directors. Prohibition to manage (Article L653-8 CC) and personal bankruptcy (Article L653-3 CC) can be ordered for up to 15 years for serious faults: abusive pursuit of a loss-making activity, asset diversion, fictitious or missing accounts, failure to declare cessation of payments within the 45-day deadline.

Liability for the deficiency (Article L651-2 CC)#

Article L651-2 of the Commercial Code allows the court, in judicial liquidation with asset shortfall, to order the director to cover all or part of this shortfall when a management fault has contributed to the liabilities. The director then engages their personal assets. The most frequently retained faults are pursuit of a loss-making operation, deliberate non-payment of social contributions and absence of regular accounting. Case law nevertheless requires a characterised fault, distinct from mere negligence.

Bankruptcy offence (Article L654-2 CC)#

Bankruptcy as a criminal offence, provided for in Article L654-2 of the Commercial Code, sanctions fraudulent conduct by the director: diversion or concealment of assets, fictitious accounting, fraudulent increase of liabilities, manifestly incomplete or irregular accounting. Penalties reach 5 years' imprisonment and a €75,000 fine, raised to 7 years and €100,000 for aggravated bankruptcy. Additional sanctions include prohibition of civic and professional rights.

Restructuring Directive 2019/1023 transposed#

The EU Directive 2019/1023 of 20 June 2019 on preventive restructuring frameworks, discharge of debt and disqualifications was transposed into French law by Ordinance No. 2021-1193 of 15 September 2021. It reinforced the role of creditor classes, modernised the accelerated safeguard and harmonised restructuring tools at the European level. Preventive procedures (ad hoc mandate, conciliation) had their confidential character reinforced.

Accelerated Restructuring Safeguard (SRA)#

The Accelerated Restructuring Safeguard, which merged the former accelerated safeguard and accelerated financial safeguard, allows a company that has prepared a draft plan within a conciliation to impose it in 2 to 4 months via a streamlined public procedure. It introduces in France the mechanism of affected parties' classes: creditors are grouped into classes (by rank, by nature), vote by class, and a plan can be imposed on a dissenting class through "cross-class cram-down" under strict conditions.

Harmonised European framework#

The directive's guiding principles (early warning, access to the preventive restructuring framework, second chance for entrepreneurs, training of professionals) now infuse all French procedures. For a director anticipating difficulties, the toolkit is wider than before: statutory auditor's alert, confidential preventive procedures, ordinary safeguard, SRA, receivership, and — as a last resort — liquidation.

The trade-off — preventive diagnostic or waiting for the crisis#

In the files we handle in Paris, the question is never "how to verify if my partner is in receivership" taken alone, but "how to articulate third-party monitoring with the management of our own risk". Three scenarios coexist. The one-off creditor needs a BODACC + Infogreffe + Treasury privileges check before every significant signature. The large structural supplier must deploy industrialised monitoring (Pappers API, FIBEN score if eligible, Coface scoring) across the whole customer portfolio. The director anticipating their own difficulties almost always wins by activating ad hoc mandate or conciliation before cessation of payments — confidentiality preserves operating value.

The underestimated risk — invisible ad hoc mandate and unpaid supplier#