To Cut Delays In Insolvency Professional Appointments, IBBI Seeks Applications For Empanelment
To cut delays in the appointment of insolvency professionals, the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Board of India (IBBI) has laid down a framework for preparing a panel of insolvency professionals for appointments by the National Company Law Tribunal (NCLT) and Debt Recovery Tribunal (DRT), with unjustified refusal by empanelled professionals to take up assignments attracting a six-month exclusion.
The IBBI on May 18 issued the Insolvency Professionals to act as Interim Resolution Professionals, Liquidators, Resolution Professionals and Bankruptcy Trustees (Recommendation) Guidelines, 2026. The guidelines will remain effective from July 1 to December 31, 2026.
The Board noted that under the Insolvency and Bankruptcy Code, 2016, it is required in certain cases to recommend names of insolvency professionals for appointment as interim resolution professionals, resolution professionals, liquidators and bankruptcy trustees.
Under the framework, the IBBI has invited expressions of interest from insolvency professionals for inclusion in the panel. Interested professionals must submit Form A by June 19, 2026, in response to invitations sent by the Board through their registered email addresses. The panel will then be shared with NCLT and DRT benches by June 30.
Submission of the expression of interest will amount to unconditional consent to act as an interim resolution professional, resolution professional, liquidator or bankruptcy trustee in proceedings involving corporate or individual debtors.
To be included in the panel, an insolvency professional must not face any pending disciplinary proceedings initiated by the IBBI or an insolvency professional agency. They must also not have been convicted by a competent court in the previous three years. They must hold a valid Authorisation for Assignment covering the entire validity period of the panel.
Applicants will also be required to disclose details of their ongoing and completed assignments. They must provide information on sectors in which they have handled insolvency cases under the Code. Details of any suspension, debarment, disciplinary proceedings or criminal convictions must also be disclosed.
The panel will be prepared on a zone-wise and bench-wise basis based on the registered office of the insolvency professional. However, Insolvency Professional Entities acting as insolvency professionals will remain eligible for appointment across all NCLT benches.
Eligible professionals will be sorted according to the volume of their ongoing assignments. Where two or more professionals have the same score, priority will be determined by registration seniority, with earlier registrants ranked higher.
The guidelines state that inclusion in the panel will be treated as deemed acceptance of appointments made by the NCLT or DRT. Insolvency professionals will not be permitted to withdraw consent or refuse appointments unless allowed under law by the tribunal or the IBBI.
Refusal without sufficient justification will result in removal from the panel for six months. However, the guidelines clarify that adjudicating authorities will continue to retain discretion to appoint insolvency professionals either from within or outside the panel.