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Delaware Code

8 Del. C. § 312 (2026)

Revival of certificate of incorporation [Effective Aug. 1, 2026]

✓ current as of May 2026
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(a) As used in this section, the term “certificate of incorporation” includes the charter of a corporation organized under any special act or any law of this State.

(b) Any corporation whose certificate of incorporation has become forfeited or void pursuant to this title may at any time procure a revival of its certificate of incorporation, together with all the rights, franchises, privileges and immunities and subject to all of its duties, debts and liabilities which had been secured or imposed by its original certificate of incorporation and all amendments thereto, by complying with the requirements of this section. Notwithstanding the foregoing, this section shall not be applicable to a corporation whose certificate of incorporation has been revoked or forfeited pursuant to § 284 of this title.

(c) The revival of the certificate of incorporation may be procured as authorized by the board of directors or members of the governing body of the corporation in accordance with subsection (h) of this section and by executing, acknowledging and filing a certificate of revival in accordance with § 103 of this title.

(d) The certificate required by subsection (c) of this section shall state:

(1) The date of filing of the corporation’s original certificate of incorporation; the name under which the corporation was originally incorporated; the name of the corporation at the time its certificate of incorporation became forfeited or void pursuant to this title; and the new name under which the corporation is to be revived to the extent required by subsection (f) of this section;

(2) The address (which shall be stated in accordance with § 131(c) of this title) of the corporation’s registered office in this State and the name of its registered agent at such address;

(3) That the corporation desiring to be revived and so reviving its certificate of incorporation was organized under the laws of this State;

(4) The date when the certificate of incorporation became forfeited or void pursuant to this title, or that the validity of any revival has been brought into question; and

(5) That the certificate of revival is filed by authority of the board of directors or members of the governing body of the corporation in accordance with subsection (h) of this section.

(e) Upon the filing of the certificate in accordance with § 103 of this title the corporation shall be revived with the same force and effect as if its certificate of incorporation had not been forfeited or void pursuant to this title. Such revival shall validate all contracts, acts, matters and things made, done and performed within the scope of its certificate of incorporation by the corporation, its directors or members of its governing body, officers, agents and stockholders or members during the time when its certificate of incorporation was forfeited or void pursuant to this title, with the same force and effect and to all intents and purposes as if the certificate of incorporation had at all times remained in full force and effect. All real and personal property, rights and credits, which belonged to the corporation at the time its certificate of incorporation became forfeited or void pursuant to this title and which were not disposed of prior to the time of its revival, and all real and personal property, rights and credits acquired by the corporation after its certificate of incorporation became forfeited or void pursuant to this title shall be vested in the corporation, after its revival, as if its certificate of incorporation had at all times remained in full force and effect, and the corporation after its revival shall be as exclusively liable for all contracts, acts, matters and things made, done or performed in its name and on its behalf by its directors or members of its governing body, officers, agents and stockholders or members prior to its revival, as if its certificate of incorporation had at all times remained in full force and effect.

(f) If, since the certificate of incorporation became forfeited or void pursuant to this title, any other corporation organized under the laws of this State shall have adopted the same name as the corporation sought to be revived or shall have adopted a name so nearly similar thereto as not to distinguish it from the corporation to be revived or any foreign corporation qualified in accordance with § 371 of this title shall have adopted the same name as the corporation sought to be revived or shall have adopted a name so nearly similar thereto as not to distinguish it from the corporation to be revived, then in such case the corporation to be revived shall not be revived under the same name which it bore when its certificate of incorporation became forfeited or void pursuant to this title, but shall be revived under some other name as set forth in the certificate to be filed pursuant to subsection (c) of this section.

(g) Any corporation that revives its certificate of incorporation under this chapter shall pay to this State a sum equal to all franchise taxes, penalties and interest thereon due at the time its certificate of incorporation became forfeited or void pursuant to this title; provided, however, that any corporation that revives its certificate of incorporation under this chapter whose certificate of incorporation has been forfeited or void for more than 5 years shall, in lieu of the payment of the franchise taxes and penalties otherwise required by this subsection, pay a sum equal to 3 times the amount of the annual franchise tax that would be due and payable by such corporation for the year in which the revival is effected, computed at the then current rate of taxation. No payment made pursuant to this subsection shall reduce the amount of franchise tax due under Chapter 5 of this title for the year in which the revival is effected. If the filing of a certificate of validation under § 204 of this title relates to a time during which the corporation’s certificate of incorporation had been forfeited or void, the annual reports and annual franchise taxes that would have been required to be filed and paid during the period in which the corporation’s certificate of incorporation had been forfeited or void, including interest thereon, are required to be filed and paid at the time of the filing of such certificate of validation.

(h) For purposes of this section and § 502(a) of this title, the board of directors or governing body of the corporation shall be comprised of the persons, who, but for the certificate of incorporation having become forfeited or void pursuant to this title, would be the duly elected or appointed directors or members of the governing body of the corporation. The requirement for authorization by the board of directors under subsection (c) of this section shall be satisfied if a majority of the directors or members of the governing body then in office, even though less than a quorum, or the sole director or member of the governing body then in office, authorizes the revival of the certificate of incorporation of the corporation and the filing of the certificate required by subsection (c) of this section. In any case where there shall be no directors of the corporation available for the purposes aforesaid, the stockholders may elect a full board of directors, as provided by the bylaws of the corporation, and the board so elected may then authorize the revival of the certificate of incorporation of the corporation and the filing of the certificate required by subsection (c) of this section. A special meeting of the stockholders for the purpose of electing directors may be called by any officer or stockholder upon notice given in accordance with § 222 of this title. For purposes of this section, the bylaws shall be the bylaws of the corporation that, but for the certificate of incorporation having become forfeited or void pursuant to this title, would be the duly adopted bylaws of the corporation.

(i) After a revival of the certificate of incorporation of the corporation shall have been effected, the provisions of § 211(c) of this title shall govern and the period of time during which the certificate of incorporation of the corporation was forfeited or void pursuant to this title shall be included within the calculation of the 30-day and 13-month periods to which § 211(c) of this title refers. A special meeting of stockholders held in accordance with subsection (h) of this section shall be deemed an annual meeting of stockholders for purposes of § 211(c) of this title.

(j) Except as otherwise provided in § 313 of this title, whenever it shall be desired to revive the certificate of incorporation of any nonstock corporation, the governing body shall perform all the acts necessary for the revival of the certificate of incorporation of the corporation which are performed by the board of directors in the case of a corporation having capital stock, and the members of any nonstock corporation who are entitled to vote for the election of members of its governing body shall perform all the acts necessary, if any, for the revival of the certificate of incorporation of the corporation which are performed by the stockholders in the case of a corporation having capital stock. Except as otherwise provided in § 313 of this title, in all other respects, the procedure for the revival of the certificate of incorporation of a nonstock corporation shall conform, as nearly as may be applicable, to the procedure prescribed in this section for the revival of the certificate of incorporation of a corporation having capital stock; provided, however, that subsection (i) of this section shall not apply to nonstock corporations.

8 Del. C. 1953, §  312;  56 Del. Laws, c. 50;  59 Del. Laws, c. 106, §  16;  64 Del. Laws, c. 112, §  56;  66 Del. Laws, c. 352, §  11;  68 Del. Laws, c. 163, §  2;  70 Del. Laws, c. 587, §§  29, 30;  73 Del. Laws, c. 82, §  35;  73 Del. Laws, c. 298, §  12;  75 Del. Laws, c. 306, §§  11-16;  77 Del. Laws, c. 253, §  64;  78 Del. Laws, c. 273, §  6;  79 Del. Laws, c. 72, §  14;  80 Del. Laws, c. 265, § 13;  83 Del. Laws, c. 377, § 14;  85 Del. Laws, c. 48, § 10;  85 Del. Laws, c. 279, § 3; 
Notes of Decisions
Cited in 14 cases (4 in the last 5 years), 1954–2026 · leading case: Solomon v. Barnett, 605 S.E.2d 599 (Ga. Ct. App. 2005).
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Solomon v. Barnett, 605 S.E.2d 599 (Ga. Ct. App. 2005). · cites it 2× “Pursuant to 8 Del. Code § 312 (e), the corporations were “renewed and revived with the same force and effect as if [their] *782 certificate[s] of incorporation had not [yet] been forfeited .”
Boyd v. Wilmington Trust Co., 630 F. Supp. 2d 379 (D. Del. 2009). “Indeed, 8 Del. C. § 312, provides for a method of reinstating corporate charters which have been forfeited.”
Willard v. Harrworth Corp., 258 A.2d 914 (Del. Ch. 1969). · cites it 3× “1 If such re *915 quest is granted, plaintiff will seek a further order compelling the calling of a meeting of such corporation's qualified stockholders for the purpose of voting on the proposed renewal of its corporate charter as provided for by the provisions of 8 Del. C. §…”
Photometric Prods. Corp. v. Radtke, 17 F.R.D. 103 (S.D.N.Y. 1954). “” 8 Del.C. § 312(e). . “That the action of the officers and Board of Directors of Photometric Produets Corporation in entering into the contract of 4/10/39 with R.”
Willard v. Harrworth Corp., 267 A.2d 577 (Del. 1970). “The abandonment by appellant in this court of his desire to renew the Certificate of Incorporation makes it unnecessary for us to consider whether 8 Del.C. § 312 relating to the revival of corporate charters has any application to the circumstances of this case.”
In re: Hawk Sys., Inc. a Delaware Corp. (Del. Ch. 2019). · cites it 4× “The Company Was Not Properly Revived Spanakos purports to have revived the Company from void status by paying its delinquent franchise taxes and obtaining a certificate for revival of the Company’s charter from the State of Delaware under 8 Del. C. § 312. Unfortunately, under…”
In re Method of Processing Ethanol Byproducts & Related Subsystems ('858) Pat. Litig., 303 F. Supp. 3d 791 (S.D. Ind. 2014). “As such, like all security interests under Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code ("UCC"), the Security Agreement did not convey title to YA Global.”
IMO Est. of Harold E. Marvel (Del. Ch. 2018). · cites it 2× “5 Revival under 8 Del. C. § 312(e) means that the corporation is treated as if the certificate of incorporation had “at all times remained in full force and effect.”
IMO Est. of Harold E. Marvel (Del. Ch. 2018). · cites it 2× “5 Revival under 8 Del. C. § 312(e) means that the corporation is treated as if the certificate of incorporation had “at all times remained in full force and effect.”
Paul Rivera v. Angkor Capital Ltd. (Del. Ch. 2024). · cites it 2× “City of New York, 2005 WL 1153752 , at *11 n.19 (S.D.N.Y. May 13, 2005) (“Nowhere in Delaware’s General Corporation Law, or its Corporation Franchise Tax Law, is a corporation whose charter has been forfeited for non-payment of taxes, referred to as dissolved.”
Bryan Dorsey v. Robert T. Jones (Del. Ch. 2026). · cites it 2× “20, 2024) (stating revival “retroactively validate[s] all actions that occurred since it became void”) (citing 8 Del. C. § 312); 8 Del. C. § 312(e) (revival validates “acts .”
SWSZ Holding, Inc. v. SZ Global Inc. v. Wich (Del. Super. Ct. 2026). · cites it 2× “8 Del. C. § 312(e) addresses revival: [R]evival shall validate all contracts, acts, matters and things made, done and performed within the scope of its certificate of incorporation by the corporation, its directors or members of its governing body, officers, agents and…”
Show all 14 citing cases →
— 8 Del. C. § 312(c) — 2 cases
In re: Hawk Sys., Inc. a Delaware Corp. (Del. Ch. 2019). “The Company Was Not Properly Revived Spanakos purports to have revived the Company from void status by paying its delinquent franchise taxes and obtaining a certificate for revival of the Company’s charter from the State of Delaware under 8 Del. C. § 312. Unfortunately, under…”
In the Matter of Forum Mobile, Inc. (Del. Ch. 2022).
— 8 Del. C. § 312(e) — 5 cases
Photometric Prods. Corp. v. Radtke, 17 F.R.D. 103 (S.D.N.Y. 1954). “” 8 Del.C. § 312(e). . “That the action of the officers and Board of Directors of Photometric Produets Corporation in entering into the contract of 4/10/39 with R.”
IMO Est. of Harold E. Marvel (Del. Ch. 2018). “5 Revival under 8 Del. C. § 312(e) means that the corporation is treated as if the certificate of incorporation had “at all times remained in full force and effect.”
IMO Est. of Harold E. Marvel (Del. Ch. 2018). “5 Revival under 8 Del. C. § 312(e) means that the corporation is treated as if the certificate of incorporation had “at all times remained in full force and effect.”
SWSZ Holding, Inc. v. SZ Global Inc. v. Wich (Del. Super. Ct. 2026). “8 Del. C. § 312(e) addresses revival: [R]evival shall validate all contracts, acts, matters and things made, done and performed within the scope of its certificate of incorporation by the corporation, its directors or members of its governing body, officers, agents and…”
Bryan Dorsey v. Robert T. Jones (Del. Ch. 2026). “20, 2024) (stating revival “retroactively validate[s] all actions that occurred since it became void”) (citing 8 Del. C. § 312); 8 Del. C. § 312(e) (revival validates “acts .”
— 8 Del. C. § 312(h) — 1 case
In re: Hawk Sys., Inc. a Delaware Corp. (Del. Ch. 2019). “The Company Was Not Properly Revived Spanakos purports to have revived the Company from void status by paying its delinquent franchise taxes and obtaining a certificate for revival of the Company’s charter from the State of Delaware under 8 Del. C. § 312. Unfortunately, under…”
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