Corporation Reinstatement and Revival Requirements in Kansas

At a glance

Requirements one by one

Confirm forfeiture or void status and rule out § 17-6812

Kansas calls the corporation filing a certificate of “revival.” Section 17-7002 covers articles that became forfeited or void under the corporation code and a prior revival whose validity is questioned. The current Secretary of State page identifies missed information reports and failure to maintain an active Kansas resident agent and registered office as common forfeiture grounds.

The route does not cover articles revoked or forfeited under § 17-6812 for misuse, abuse, or nonuse of corporate powers. Voluntary dissolution, merger, conversion, and court-ordered dissolution also require their own analysis.

Revival is available at any time

Section 17-7002(b) states no outside deadline. The certificate gives the original articles filing date, the name at forfeiture and resulting name, current Kansas resident agent and registered-office street address, due-organization recital, forfeiture or void date, and board-authority recital. Current Form RR also asks for the Kansas business ID.

The filing is paper-only. Form RR, every missed paper information report, and all fees travel together to the Kansas Secretary of State; the agency says it cannot process the documents separately.

The board structure survives for this limited purpose

The board consists of the persons who would be directors but for forfeiture. A majority of directors then in office may authorize revival even if that is less than a quorum; a sole remaining director may also act.

If no director is available, stockholders may elect a full board as the bylaws provide, and that board authorizes revival. Form RR is then signed by an authorized person under penalty of perjury.

Cure the name, agent, and report record

The certificate always supplies a current resident agent and Kansas registered office. If the old name is unavailable, current Form RR offers two paths: attach Form CN written consent to use the similar name, or state a new distinguishable name in the revival certificate.

A for-profit corporation files every past-due biennial information report under § 17-7503 from the immediately preceding ten years. That produces a current maximum of five reports. The report includes the principal office, officers and directors, business nature, and specified majority-owned subsidiaries; a signer subscribes it as true under penalty of perjury.

Keep the fixed fee separate from catch-up charges

Current Form RR charges a $35 revival filing fee. When the forfeiture resulted from missed reports, add the $85 penalty and $110 for each required paper report: $230 with one report through $670 with five. A corporation forfeited only for failure to maintain an active resident agent may omit the $85 report penalty.

No revival-specific expedite tier appears in the current form or official reinstatement page.

Revival validates acts and restores property with stated limits

Filing revives the corporation as if the articles had never become forfeited or void. Section 17-7002(e) validates forfeiture-period contracts and acts made within the scope of the articles; vests undisposed property held at forfeiture and property acquired afterward; and makes the corporation exclusively liable for acts done in its name and on its behalf before revival.

The statute does not promise return of property disposed of before revival, validation of acts outside the articles, or automatic restoration of a separate license, permit, insurance policy, tax status, or foreign qualification.

What trips people up

• Kansas uses “revival,” not a model-act reinstatement application. Use Form RR for a corporation or business trust.
• Ten years means five reports under the biennial cycle. Each is paper-priced at $110 in the revival package.
• The $85 penalty depends on the forfeiture ground. Form RR says an agent-only forfeiture may ignore it.
• An unavailable name does not always force a rename. Written consent under Form CN is the agency's alternative.
• Board authorization has a statutory fallback. A remaining director may act without a quorum, or stockholders may elect a board if none remains.

Common questions

Is there a time limit to revive a Kansas corporation? No. Section 17-7002(b) permits a qualifying corporation to procure revival “at any time.”

Can Form RR be filed online? No. The current reinstatement page lists it as a paper form, and its instructions require the signed certificate, missed paper reports, and payment in one mailed package.

Does revival automatically return property already transferred away? No. Section 17-7002(e) expressly restores property that was not disposed of before revival and property acquired after forfeiture.

Statutes and sources

• K.S.A. § 17-7002 — eligibility, any-time filing, certificate fields, board fallback, name rule, ten-year reports, validation, property, and liability. Official Revisor text (accessed 2026-08-02).
• K.S.A. §§ 17-7503, 17-7509, and 17-7510 — biennial report, April 15, contents, fee base, penalty, notice, and forfeiture. Official § 17-7503 and § 17-7510 (accessed 2026-08-02).
• Kansas Secretary of State filing materials — paper package, five-report cap, name alternatives, agent fields, $35 filing, conditional $85 penalty, and $110 reports. Reinstatement page, Form RR, and Form IFP (accessed 2026-08-02).