The Insolvency (England and Wales) (Amendment) Rules 2026 (SI 2026/561) come into force on 22 June 2026, introducing a series of largely technical and administrative – but welcome – changes to the Insolvency (England and Wales) Rules 2016.
While not substantive, a number of changes are likely to affect day‑to‑day insolvency practice.
Key changes
Streamlining electronic communication and filing
The amendments bring the Rules into line with modern electronic practice. In particular:
Removal of fax as a permitted method of communication, including in the context of out‑of‑hours administration appointments by qualifying floating charge holders.
Electronic filing of documents amended: going forward, only one copy of a document is required where filing via CE‑File (removing the outdated need for duplicate copies to be filed in order to avoid a technical procedural defect).
Administration appointments: removal of requirement to specify date and time
The amended Rules also remove the requirement to include the time and date of appointment in the notice of appointment of an administrator. This will remove scope for technical challenges based on discrepancies in timing or failure to include this information, while simplifying the content of notices of appointment.
Bankruptcy procedure: jurisdiction and administration
There are two notable changes to bankruptcy procedure:
The High Court threshold (for petitions allocated to the London Insolvency District) is increased from £50,000 to £500,000.
Where a bankruptcy arises from a debtor’s application, the trustee’s notice on completion is now to be delivered to the Official Receiver, rather than filed at court.
In practice, the increased threshold will shift more petitions into the County Court at Central London, with the High Court reserved for higher‑value cases. The change to trustee notices removes an unnecessary court filing step.
Remuneration: approval of fee increases
The amended Rules clarify the process for officeholders seeking approval for remuneration that exceeds the approved fee estimate. Where remuneration has not been fixed by the court, an officeholder must seek approval from:
- The creditors’ committee, or
- If none exists, the creditors (or class of creditors) which approved the original basis.
This resolves previous ambiguity where a committee was formed after initial approval, but officeholders will need to ensure they are directing applications to the correct approving body and complications may arise where governance arrangements change during the course of an insolvency proceeding.
Reporting and technical clarifications
A number of more technical amendments aim to improve clarity and consistency:
- Updates to terminology, including removal of the obsolete term “registrar” and alignment of the definition of “judge” with current practice directions.
- Clarification of information requirements under certain reporting provisions.
- General tidying up of drafting to improve coherence across the Rules.
Practical implications
Although these changes are unlikely to alter outcomes, they should make the Rules easier to navigate and reduce scope for procedural uncertainty.
