In short
- Active means the corporation still exists in law. It does not mean it is trading, or that its filings are up to date.
- Dissolution pending is still active, but Corporations Canada has given notice that it will dissolve the corporation, almost always for missed annual filings.
- Amalgamated means it merged into another corporation, which now owns its property and owes its debts.
- Discontinued means it moved to another jurisdiction's law and carries on there.
- Dissolved means it no longer exists, though it can still be sued for two years and can sometimes be revived.
What a status tells you
Corporations Canada gives every federal corporation a status. It describes the corporation's legal standing only: in its own words, a status does not necessarily show whether the corporation is operating. An active corporation can be dormant, and an amalgamated or discontinued one can be carrying on, under another name or another law.
The official search groups the statuses into four: Active, Inactive - Amalgamated, Inactive - Discontinued and Dissolved. The three "pending" or "intent" statuses below are kinds of Active, and appear when you search for active corporations.
Active
The corporation has not been dissolved, amalgamated or moved away. That is all Active promises. Its annual returns may still be overdue, so look at its filings too: on this site, each company page shows them year by year. The guide to checking good standing explains the official proof.
Dissolution pending
Corporations Canada has started to dissolve the corporation for not meeting a requirement of the Act. On the public record it comes with a warning that two annual filings in a row are overdue and that a notice of intent to dissolve has been sent. Since 2024, missing information on the corporation's individuals with significant control can lead here too.
The corporation still exists. Before dissolving it, Corporations Canada must give the corporation and each director 120 days' notice and publish it (section 212(2)); filing what is missing within that time stops the dissolution. By our count of Corporations Canada's open data for October 23, 2026, about one in 21 active federal business corporations had this status.
Intent to dissolve filed
The corporation itself has filed a statement that it intends to wind up and dissolve. From then it must stop doing business except to wind up its affairs, but it still exists until a certificate of dissolution is issued (section 211(6)). The corporation can change its mind and revoke the intent before it is dissolved.
Discontinuance pending
The corporation is moving from the federal Act to another law: a province, another country, or another federal Act. Its shareholders have approved the move, and until the move is complete, the federal Act still governs it.
Amalgamated
The corporation merged with one or more others to form a single corporation. The amalgamated corporation keeps the property of every corporation that joined it and is liable for all their debts and lawsuits (section 186).
On a federal amalgamation, the new corporation gets its own number and its own anniversary date, even when it keeps one of the old names, and every corporation that joined it shows as amalgamated into it. If a supplier shows this status, you now deal with the corporation it merged into, which the record names.
Discontinued
The corporation now lives under a law Corporations Canada does not administer, such as a province's or another country's. The federal Act stopped applying to it on the date of its certificate of discontinuance (section 188(9)). It has not closed: it carries on under its new law with the same property and debts. Search the register of the jurisdiction it moved to; the federal record names it.
Dissolved
The corporation no longer exists; it ceased to exist on the date on its certificate of dissolution (section 212(4)). The record says how it ended:
- Dissolved by the corporation: its owners chose to close it, which is free online.
- Dissolved for non-compliance: Corporations Canada ended it for not meeting the Act's requirements, almost always for missed annual filings. By the same count, more than twice as many federal business corporations have ended this way as their owners closed themselves.
- Dissolved by court order: a court ordered it closed, for example in a dispute among shareholders.
- Dissolved by Corporations Canada and dissolved under Part II of the Canada Corporations Act: these apply to bodies under the old Canada Corporations Act, not to business corporations. The first means the body did not move to a new Act within the time allowed.
What dissolution means for you
A dissolved corporation cannot do business, sign contracts or hold property. Anything it still owned on the day it was dissolved went to the federal Crown (section 228(1)).
Its debts do not simply disappear. A claim can be brought against it within two years after the dissolution as if it still existed, and shareholders who received its property when it closed can be made to pay its creditors, up to what they received (section 226(4)).
A dissolved corporation can be revived: see reviving a dissolved corporation.
Frequently asked questions
Does Active mean the business is open?
No. It only means the corporation has not been dissolved, amalgamated or moved away; Corporations Canada says a status does not show whether a corporation is operating.
What does dissolution pending mean?
Corporations Canada has given notice that it will dissolve the corporation, almost always because two years of annual filings are missing. The corporation still exists and can stop the dissolution by filing within the 120 days in the notice.
What is the difference between intent to dissolve filed and dissolved?
With an intent to dissolve, the owners have started winding up and the corporation must stop normal business, but it still exists. Once a certificate of dissolution is issued, it no longer exists.
My supplier shows amalgamated. Who do I deal with now?
The corporation it merged into, which the federal record names. That corporation owns the old one's property and is liable for its debts and lawsuits.
Can a dissolved corporation still be sued?
Yes. A claim can be brought within two years after the dissolution, and shareholders who received its property when it closed can be made to pay, up to what they received.
Official sources
- Glossary of terms(opens in a new tab)
Corporations Canada's definition of every status.
- Search for a federal corporation(opens in a new tab)
Each corporation's status on the official record.
- Notices of intent to dissolve(opens in a new tab)
The corporations Corporations Canada has given notice it will dissolve.
- Federal corporations open data(opens in a new tab)
The daily files the counts on this page come from.
- Guide to dissolving a business corporation(opens in a new tab)
How owners close a corporation themselves.
This guide explains the general rules for federal corporations. It is not legal or tax advice for a particular situation: for that, speak to a lawyer or an accountant. It was last checked against the Act and Corporations Canada's own pages on Oct 25, 2026.