What is a small business restructuring plan?
Small business restructuring is a formal process under Australian insolvency law that lets an eligible company put a plan to its creditors to settle its debts while the directors stay in control. A restructuring practitioner runs the process and creditors vote on the plan. Whether a company qualifies depends on the size of its debts and a few other conditions. It sits outside ordinary business finance, so your accountant or a registered insolvency adviser is the right first call.
How the process usually works
The company appoints a small business restructuring practitioner, who helps the directors build a plan to put to creditors. Directors keep running the business while that happens, which is what separates it from voluntary administration.
- Eligibility conditions are set out in the law, including a cap on what the company owes
- Tax lodgements and employee entitlements generally need to be in order first
- Creditors vote on the plan, so the numbers have to be credible to them
If the plan is accepted the admitted debts are settled under it. If not, the usual insolvency options remain open.
Who to talk to first
This is legal and accounting territory, not broker territory. Your own accountant and a registered insolvency adviser can tell you whether restructuring is even available to your company. The free Small Business Debt Helpline on 1800 413 828 is staffed by financial counsellors. Where a commercial finance broker fits is usually earlier. If the pressure is a maturing facility or an expensive lender rather than the trade itself, a refinance may be worth pricing. Sometimes it doesn’t stack up and a broker should say so.
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Last updated 15th July 2026. Reviewed by Authorised Credit Representative 554584 of Australian Credit Licence 414426.