The Securities and Exchange Commission has extended an earlier order, so that subject to certain conditions that we reported on here, public companies may have an additional 45 days from the original due date to file their Exchange Act reports that are otherwise due between March 1 and July 1, 2020.

Companies relying on this relief, in compliance with the conditions imposed by the order, will preserve their eligibility to use registration statements on Forms S-3, F-3 and S-8, as long as they were current and timely in their Exchange Act filing requirements as of the first day of the 45-day of the relief period, and they file their reports due during the relief period.  In addition, those companies will be permitted to rely on Rule 12b-25 if they are unable to file the required reports on or before the extended due date.  Rule 12b-25 provide an additional 15-calendar day grace period for annual reports, and a five-calendar day grace period for quarterly reports, under certain circumstances.