Sections 55 to 58 explained: this guide covers what it means, who it applies to, the step-by-step process, documents required, fees, due dates and penalties in India — so you can stay compliant with confidence and avoid costly mistakes.
Sections 55 to 58 form Chapter IV of Part II, the fast track corporate insolvency resolution process. As per the IBBI consolidated text of the Code amended up to 12 August 2021, it is a shorter process for corporate debtors that the Central Government notifies, to be completed in ninety days. The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Amendment) Act, 2026 omits the whole Chapter. This article explains the four sections as printed and then the omission.
A fast track process is open to corporate debtors in classes the Central Government notifies. It is to be completed within ninety days of the insolvency commencement date, with one extension of not more than forty-five days on a seventy-five percent vote of the committee of creditors. Section 58 applies Chapter II and Chapter VII. The 2026 Act omits Chapter IV from a date to be notified, and prints no saving for it in the text consulted.
Section 55: what the process is and who may use it
Section 55(1): "A corporate insolvency resolution process carried out in accordance with this Chapter shall be called as fast track corporate insolvency resolution process." Section 55(2): an application for the process "may be made in respect of the following corporate debtors":
| Clause | Class |
|---|---|
| (a) | a corporate debtor with assets and income below a level as may be notified by the Central Government |
| (b) | a corporate debtor with such class of creditors or such amount of debt as may be notified by the Central Government |
| (c) | such other category of corporate persons as may be notified by the Central Government |
The Code leaves all three classes to notification. No notification is in the texts consulted, so the level, the class, the amount and the category must be checked. The heading of section 55 prints "Fast track corporation insolvency resolution process", with "corporation" for "corporate"; it is a printing slip, quoted as printed.
Whoever is advising a corporate debtor or a creditor on the choice of route can take legal consultation on which process applies to the debtor.
Section 56: time period
Section 56(1): "Subject to the provisions of sub-section (3), the fast track corporate insolvency resolution process shall be completed within a period of ninety days from the insolvency commencement date." Sub-section (2): the resolution professional "shall file an application to the Adjudicating Authority to extend the period of the fast track corporate insolvency resolution process beyond ninety days if instructed to do so by a resolution passed at a meeting of the committee of creditors and supported by a vote of seventy-five percent of the voting share." Sub-section (3): the Adjudicating Authority, if satisfied that the process cannot be completed in ninety days, "may, by order, extend the duration of such process beyond the said period of ninety days by such further period, as it thinks fit, but not exceeding forty-five days". The proviso: "any extension of the fast track corporate insolvency resolution process under this section shall not be granted more than once."
| Step | Figure as printed |
|---|---|
| Base period | ninety days from the insolvency commencement date |
| Vote to seek extension | "seventy-five percent of the voting share" |
| Extension | such further period as the Adjudicating Authority thinks fit, not exceeding forty-five days |
| Number of extensions | not more than once |
The figure in sub-section (2) is printed "seventy-five percent" without the full stop used elsewhere in the Code ("per cent."); it is quoted as printed.
Section 57: how to initiate
"An application for fast track corporate insolvency resolution process may be filed by a creditor or corporate debtor as the case may be, alongwith-" two items: "(a) the proof of the existence of default as evidenced by records available with an information utility or such other means as may be specified by the Board; and (b) such other information as may be specified by the Board to establish that the corporate debtor is eligible for fast track corporate insolvency resolution process." The line "Manner of initiating fast track corporate insolvency resolution process." is printed a second time just after section 57 in the consolidated text; it is a repeated heading and is not part of the section. The Board here is the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India; what it has specified is not in the texts consulted.
Section 58: Chapter II and Chapter VII apply
"The process for conducting a corporate insolvency resolution process under Chapter II and the provisions relating to offences and penalties under Chapter VII shall apply to this Chapter as the context may require." The ordinary process in Chapter II and the offences and penalties in Chapter VII therefore apply to the fast track process, so far as the context requires. For the ordinary process see our guide to the corporate insolvency resolution process, and for the range of the fast track sections on the site see the post on fast track sections 55 to 58.
What the Amendment Act, 2026 changes
Section 39 of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Amendment) Act, 2026 reads: "In Part II of the principal Act, Chapter IV shall be omitted." That removes sections 55, 56, 57 and 58. The Amendment Act, 2026 comes into force on the date or dates the Central Government notifies; the notification is not in the texts consulted, so check whether this change has been notified.
Three related points follow from the texts.
- Section 33(1)(a). The consolidated text of section 33(1)(a) mentions the fast track process under section 56. Section 20 of the Amendment Act, 2026 omits the words and figures "or the fast-track corporate insolvency resolution process under section 56" from clause (a). See the live post on the liquidation order under section 33.
- A new Chapter in its place. Section 40 of the Amendment Act, 2026 inserts a new Chapter IV-A, "Creditor-initiated insolvency resolution process", sections 58A to 58K, "After Chapter IV of the principal Act". The Amendment Act prints "After Chapter IV" although section 39 omits Chapter IV; the wording is quoted as printed. Section 7 of the Act adds the words "or Chapter IV-A" to section 11(ba). Our next article starts the new Chapter with section 58A, and the site has a post on the creditor-initiated process in Chapter IV-A and one on the transition from the fast track process.
- Saving. The Amendment Act, 2026 prints savings for the omitted sections 38 to 42 (in the Explanation to section 35(1)) and for sections 74 and 76 (in Explanation II to the new section 235A). In the text consulted, no saving is printed for Chapter IV (sections 55 to 58). The text is silent on a fast track process that is pending on the date of commencement, and the reader should check the notification and the transitional position.
The Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (Fast Track Insolvency Resolution Process for Corporate Persons) Regulations, 2017 are made under section 58 among other sections; the copy consulted is amended up to 07.02.2018, and its date does not show that any provision of the Amendment Act, 2026 is in force. The detail is for those regulations and is not taken up here.
Amendments and notifications made after 12 August 2021, other than the Amendment Act, 2026, are not in the texts consulted and should be checked.
Example
Reading Chapter IV as printed in the consolidated text, suppose Juniper Hardware Pvt Ltd, a small corporate debtor, fell in a class notified under section 55(2). Its creditor files an application under section 57 with proof of default from an information utility record. The process must be completed in ninety days. After eighty days the committee of creditors, by seventy-five percent of the voting share, instructs the resolution professional to ask for more time. The Adjudicating Authority extends it by forty days, which is within the forty-five-day limit, and cannot extend it again. The names and figures are invented, and nothing in this example says that any class has been notified.
Need help choosing the right insolvency route?
Where a debtor or creditor is choosing between the fast track process, the creditor-initiated process and the ordinary process, the route depends on the debtor, the notification position and the facts. Our team can help you place the case through legal consultation.
Key takeaways
- The fast track process is for corporate debtors in classes the Central Government notifies under section 55(2); no notification is in the texts consulted.
- Completion is within ninety days from the insolvency commencement date, with one extension of not more than forty-five days on a seventy-five percent vote.
- Section 57 requires proof of default from an information utility record or other means, and other information as specified by the Board.
- Section 58 applies Chapter II and the offences and penalties of Chapter VII as the context requires.
- The Amendment Act, 2026 omits Chapter IV from a date to be notified; it prints no saving for it in the text consulted, and it removes the fast track words from section 33(1)(a).
Read next
- Section 58A: debtors eligible for the creditor-initiated process
- Sections 54-O and 54P: moving from the pre-pack to CIRP
- Fast track corporate insolvency resolution process: sections 55 to 58
- The corporate insolvency resolution process: a complete guide
Disclaimer: Based on the IBBI consolidated text of the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016 amended up to 12 August 2021 and on the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code (Amendment) Act, 2026 (No. 6 of 2026), which comes into force on the date or dates notified by the Central Government, as consulted on 2 October 2026. It explains the words of the statute only; commencement notifications, other amendments made after 12 August 2021, notified thresholds, the rules and IBBI regulations, and the way tribunals and courts apply these sections should be checked. This article is general information, not legal advice; check the official text before acting.