Key takeaways
- •A company that has finished a small business restructuring plan or a deed of company arrangement can borrow again, using a loan secured by property the company or a director owns.
- •Anyone, including a bank, can search the public Company Register kept by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission and see that your company went through a restructure.
- •A completed small business restructuring plan does not cancel a lockdown director penalty, or a standard director penalty that was not remitted within 21 days of the notice. The director stays personally liable for any balance.
- •A personal guarantee you gave for a company debt survives a restructure. A deed of company arrangement does not stop the creditor acting on it, and the restructuring plan's stop on guarantee claims ends once the plan is entered into.
- •A small business restructuring plan does not clear the mortgage over your property, because the plan binds a secured lender only for any amount its security does not cover, or where the lender agrees to be bound.
- •A private loan from Secured Lending, backed by property, can give your company the funds to pay a new Australian Taxation Office debt, refinance its existing lender or fund the business, and your company repays it through a bank refinance or a property sale.
If your company has come out of a small business restructuring plan, a deed of company arrangement or a voluntary administration, it can borrow again. A short-term private loan, secured by property your company or a director owns, can pay a new Australian Taxation Office balance, refinance the lender that holds the existing mortgage, or pay for the materials and labour on its next job, and your company repays it through a bank refinance or a property sale.
We would be glad to help your company with this. A private loan is a good fit after a restructure because we lend against the property, and we look at the equity within 70% of its value and at how your company will repay the loan. We lend our own funds, and we have funded a company through a small business restructuring before, as the case study below shows. Loans start from $250,000, with larger loans assessed case by case, and interest rates start from 9.7% p.a.
The restructure did clear a great deal, but not everything, and the next lender will look at what is left. This guide covers both.
The three ways a company comes out of a formal process
Each process ends differently, and each leaves the company in a slightly different place.
| Process | How it ends | Where it leaves the company |
|---|---|---|
| Small business restructuring plan | The plan ends when its conditions are met | Released from all admissible debts, and keeps any property the plan did not need to pay creditors |
| Deed of company arrangement | The deed can end when its obligations are fulfilled and creditors have been paid | Free of the debts the deed covered |
| Voluntary administration returned to the directors | Creditors vote at the second meeting to return the company to the directors | The directors are responsible for making sure the company pays its outstanding debts as they fall due |
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission explains the small business restructuring process in its frequently asked questions. A plan is open to companies with total liabilities of no more than $1 million, and the directors stay in control of the company during the restructuring. Its guide to voluntary administration for creditors covers the deed and the return of a company to its directors, which it says happens rarely.
What the next lender will see
The Australian Securities and Investments Commission notes on its public Company Register that the company appointed a restructuring practitioner and entered external administration. When the company enters its plan, the register records that its status has reverted to registered. Both entries can be searched by anyone, including a bank.
Small business restructuring is now common. The commission's 2025 review of the process counted 3,388 appointments between 1 July 2022 and 31 December 2024, and around half came from construction (27%) and accommodation and food services (23%). Of the more than $101 million paid to unsecured creditors under fulfilled plans, about 87% went to the Australian Taxation Office. The ATO says it is a creditor of most companies that use the process, and often the largest by value, so the company's tax lodgments and payments since the plan are the first records worth having in order.
What the restructure did not clear
A completed plan or deed clears the company's old unsecured debts. Four things can remain, and each has a finance answer.
Director penalties
A director penalty is a personal liability of the director, and it runs alongside the company's own tax debt. The ATO's guidance on small business restructuring is direct on this point: "A successful SBR will not remit a lockdown director penalty or a standard director penalty that has not been remitted within 21 days of the director penalty notice, as the director penalty liability exists parallel to the liability of the business."
Payments made under the plan can reduce the director penalty, but the director stays personally liable for any balance. Your accountant can confirm what, if anything, is still owed.
Personal guarantees
A guarantee you gave for a company debt is a separate promise, and a restructure does not cancel it. During a small business restructuring, creditors cannot act on a director's guarantee without the court's leave, but that stop ends once the plan is entered into. For a deed of company arrangement, the commission's guide says: "The DOCA does not prevent a creditor who holds a personal guarantee from the company’s director or another person acting under the personal guarantee to be repaid their debt."
The existing mortgage
A restructuring plan binds a secured lender only for any amount its security does not cover, or where the lender agrees to be bound. A plan also does not stop a secured lender from enforcing its mortgage, unless the lender voted for the plan and the plan prevents it, or a court orders otherwise. The mortgage over your property is still there after the plan.
If that lender is reviewing the facility or will not renew it because of the restructure, a private first mortgage over the same property can pay it out at settlement. Our page on refinancing business loans explains how the payout works.
Tax obligations after the plan started
Once a plan is in place, the ATO expects the company to meet all its ongoing tax reporting and payment obligations in full and on time. Its guidance says it may take stronger enforcement action if the company misses those obligations, even when the company is meeting its plan payments. A garnishee notice that was already in place when the restructuring practitioner was appointed is generally not withdrawn either.
If the company has built up a new ATO balance, such as a business activity statement from the plan period that it could not pay in full, our tax debt loans give the company the funds to pay the ATO in full. The loan funds are paid to your company, which then pays the ATO.
How a private loan works after a restructure
Your company is the borrower, and the loan funds are paid to your company. It can use them to pay a new ATO balance, to refinance the existing secured lender, to buy materials and pay labour for a contract, to purchase premises or to fund working capital while trading recovers.
The loan is secured by a first or second mortgage over residential, commercial or industrial property. That can be property your company owns, a director's home or investment property, or property already held in a company or a trust.
| Detail | |
|---|---|
| Loan size | From $250,000, with larger loans assessed case by case |
| Maximum loan-to-value ratio | 70%, including any existing loan on a second mortgage |
| Term | 1 to 24 months, most often 3 to 6 months |
| Interest rates | From 9.7% p.a., and from 11.95% p.a. on a second mortgage |
| Repayment | Through a defined exit agreed before settlement, such as a bank refinance or a property sale |
The 70% limit is the constraint that sets the loan size: the total borrowing on the property, including any existing mortgage, has to stay within 70% of its value. A second property can be added as additional security where one property does not have enough equity. Our page on debt restructuring loans covers the wider range of situations we fund.
We are a lender, not an insolvency practitioner or a tax adviser. Questions about the plan, a director penalty balance or whether the company can pay its debts as they fall due are for your restructuring practitioner or your accountant.
If the plan is still running
During the restructuring period, before creditors vote on the plan, the directors stay in control of the company and can deal with its assets in the ordinary course of business. Any transaction or dealing with company assets outside the ordinary course needs the restructuring practitioner's consent. If your company's plan is still running, speak to your restructuring practitioner before the company takes on new borrowing, and include the plan's current status when you contact us.
Case study: A $300,000 second mortgage to support a small business restructuring plan
A profitable business with a strong client base came under pressure after a change in management. The new general manager had not given priority to the firm's financial obligations, and the company built up a tax debt and unpaid trade creditors. Banks would not extend new credit while the tax debt was unsettled.
After reviewing the business's financials and the restructuring plan, we lent $300,000 on a second mortgage over the director's investment property. The loan was approved and the funds were released within days.
The company used the funds for two purposes: to pay a significant portion of its tax debt so the small business restructuring plan could proceed, and to give the business enough capital to meet its urgent obligations and keep operating while the restructure took effect.
Frequently asked questions
Will a lender see that my company went through a restructure?
Yes. The Australian Securities and Investments Commission notes the appointment of a restructuring practitioner and the external administration on its public Company Register, and anyone can search it.
Can my company borrow against property after a small business restructuring?
Yes. We assess the property, the equity within 70% of its value and how your company will repay the loan, and the borrower is your company.
Does a completed plan clear the mortgage over my property?
No. A restructuring plan binds a secured lender only for any shortfall in its security or where it agrees to be bound, so the existing mortgage stays in place.
I still owe a director penalty personally after the plan. What happens now?
We need to learn your scenario further. Payments under the plan may have reduced the penalty, but you stay personally liable for any balance, so ask your accountant to confirm the amount before you speak to us.
How long until a bank will refinance my company?
Each bank sets its own lending criteria, so there is no single date. Our loan runs for 1 to 24 months, and the exit is agreed before settlement, so the term can be chosen to suit the bank refinance your company is working towards.
How Secured Lending Can Help
We would be glad to help your company after its restructure. Our loan gives your company the funds it needs now, secured by property your company or a director already owns, and your company repays us through a defined exit, such as a bank refinance or the sale of a property.
A private loan suits a company that has just been through a formal process because we look at the property, the equity and the repayment plan. We lend our own funds and our in-house team values the property, so in most cases we decide within hours, we issue a letter of offer as soon as terms are agreed, and we can settle within 24 hours.
We provide secured loans backed by real property. If you would like us to look at your company's situation, it helps to have these to hand:
- •The restructuring plan or deed, and the practitioner's notice that it is complete, or its current status.
- •The company's ATO statement of account and its lodgment record since the plan started.
- •Any director penalty notice or demand under a personal guarantee.
- •The property that could back the loan, its estimated value and any existing loan on it.
- •How your company plans to repay the loan, and roughly when.
You are welcome to call us on 1300 795 175 to talk it through, or send the details through and we will come back to you.
