SEC Form 25 Explained: Delisting, Deregistration and Timing

Form 25 is the filing that formally ends a security's listing on a national securities exchange, filed with the SEC under Rule 12d2-2 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. It can come from the company itself, choosing to delist voluntarily, or from the exchange, removing a security that no longer qualifies to trade. Either way, the effective date, not the filing date, is what actually changes the company's listing and reporting status.

This guide covers what the form reports, the difference between Form 25 and Form 25-NSE, the two different timelines that apply depending on what is being terminated, and what an issuer has to do before and after filing.

What Form 25 reports

Rule 12d2-2 governs two related but separate actions, and Form 25 covers both:

• Removing a class of securities from listing on a national securities exchange.
• Withdrawing the registration of that class under Section 12(b) of the Exchange Act, which is the registration that made exchange listing possible in the first place.

A company can lose its exchange listing without immediately losing its Section 12(b) registration, which is why the form and the rule behind it separate the two events instead of treating delisting as one single switch.

Form 25 vs Form 25-NSE: two different filers

The SEC's own supporting documentation for this form draws a clear line: issuers file Form 25 through EDGAR when they are delisting voluntarily, and national securities exchanges file Form 25-NSE through EDGAR when the exchange itself is removing a security. Form 25-NSE is not a separate form with its own rule; it is an EDGAR submission type the SEC uses to track exchange-initiated removals as distinct from issuer-initiated ones, and for Paperwork Reduction Act purposes the SEC treats the two as a single form.

A failing listing standard often shows up earlier than either Form 25 variant. Exchanges typically give a company a cure period after a deficiency notice before removal, and that notice reaches EDGAR first as an 8-K Item 3.01 disclosure, well before any Form 25 is filed.

When a Form 25 actually takes effect

This is the part most summaries compress into one number. Rule 12d2-2 sets two different timelines, depending on what the filing is terminating:

The SEC can also postpone either effective date under Rule 12d2-2(d)(3), for example to confirm the issuer complied with the exchange's own delisting rules or to set conditions it considers necessary to protect investors. Nothing about delisting is automatic or instant: the listing can end in 10 days while the registration underneath it stays open for up to 90.

What an issuer has to do before filing to delist voluntarily

A company that wants to delist itself, rather than being removed by the exchange, has obligations before it can file Form 25:

1. Comply with the listing exchange's own rules and any applicable state law governing the decision to delist.
2. Give the exchange written notice of its intent at least 10 days before filing Form 25.
3. Publish notice of the pending delisting to the public, including posting it on the company's own website if it maintains one, and keep that notice available until the delisting takes effect.

Skipping the notice requirements does not stop Form 25 from being accepted on EDGAR, but it is a separate compliance failure from the filing itself.

What happens to reporting duties afterward

Section 13(a) periodic reporting obligations that exist only because of the Section 12(b) registration are suspended on the effective date of the Form 25, not the date it was filed. If the SEC delays that effective date, the issuer still has to file any periodic reports that come due in the meantime, within 60 days of the delay. A company should also check separately whether it has an independent duty to report under Section 12(g), for having enough shareholders and assets to register that way regardless of exchange listing, or under Section 15(d), tied to an earlier registered securities offering. Form 25 only reaches the Section 12(b) duty; it does not automatically clear either of those.

Working with Form 25 data as a developer

Delisting and deregistration notices are filed by both companies and exchanges, so pulling them by form type covers more ground than watching one filer's history. To search every Form 25-NSE filed by exchanges in a date range:

curl 'https://secfeedapi.com/v1/filings?query=formType:"25-NSE" AND filedAt:[2026-09-01 TO 2026-09-30]&size=50' \
  -H "Authorization: Bearer YOUR_API_KEY"

Each result includes the filer, the CIK, the accession number and a link to the filing itself:

{
  "formType": "25-NSE",
  "companyName": "EXAMPLE CAPITAL HOLDINGS INC",
  "cik": "0001234567",
  "filedAt": "2026-09-12",
  "accessionNo": "0001234567-26-000045"
}

To find issuer-filed delistings instead, swap the form type to "25". In Python, with the SecFeed SDK:

from secfeed import Client

sf = Client("YOUR_API_KEY")
rows = sf.filings(query='formType:"25"', size=50)
for r in rows:
    print(r["companyName"], r["filedAt"], r["accessionNo"])

The full set of searchable fields, including form type, filer, CIK and filing date, is documented on the Filing Search API page, and the SEC filing types guide places Form 25 among the rest of EDGAR's form catalog.

Frequently asked questions

What does Form 25 mean for a stock?

It means a class of the company's securities is being removed from listing on a national securities exchange, under Rule 12d2-2. The removal itself takes effect 10 days after the form is filed, though the company's SEC registration tied to that listing can remain open for up to 90 days longer.

What is the difference between Form 25 and Form 25-NSE?

They are the same underlying form filed by different parties for different reasons. Issuers file Form 25 when they choose to delist voluntarily. Exchanges file Form 25-NSE when they are removing a security on their own initiative, for reasons ranging from a bond maturing to a failed listing standard.

How long after Form 25 is filed does delisting take effect?

Removal from exchange listing takes effect 10 days after filing. Withdrawing the Section 12(b) registration behind that listing takes effect 90 days after filing, unless the SEC shortens or extends either period under Rule 12d2-2.

Does filing Form 25 end a company's SEC reporting obligations?

Only the reporting duty that exists solely because of the Section 12(b) registration, and only once the withdrawal becomes effective. A company can still have independent reporting duties under Section 12(g) or Section 15(d) that Form 25 does not touch.

Does an 8-K always come before a Form 25?

Not always, but a listing deficiency often reaches EDGAR first as an 8-K Item 3.01 notice, since exchanges usually give a company a cure period before actually removing the security and triggering a Form 25 or Form 25-NSE.