(a) A corporation administratively dissolved under Code Section 14-2-1421 may apply to the Secretary of State for reinstatement. The application must:

(1) Recite the name of the corporation and the effective date of its administrative dissolution;

(2) State that the ground or grounds for dissolution either did not exist or have been eliminated;

(3) State that the name by which the corporation will be known after reinstatement satisfies the requirements of Code Section 14-2-401;

(4) Contain a statement by the corporation reciting that all taxes owed by the corporation have been paid; and

(5) Be accompanied by an amount equal to the total annual registration fees and penalties that would have been payable during the periods between dissolution and reinstatement, plus the fee required for the application for reinstatement, and any other fees and penalties payable for earlier periods.

(b) If the corporation's name no longer satisfies the requirements of Code Section 14-2-401, the corporation shall, as a condition of reinstatement, include in its application for reinstatement the adoption of a corporate name that is available in accordance with Code Section 14-2-401 and that has been reserved pursuant to Code Section 14-2-402. If the application for reinstatement contains a new corporate name, the articles of incorporation shall be deemed to have been amended to change the name of the corporation to the name so adopted.

(c) If the Secretary of State determines that the application contains the information required by subsection (a) of this Code section and that the information is correct, the Secretary of State shall prepare a certificate of reinstatement that recites his or her determination and the effective date of reinstatement, file the original of the certificate, and serve a copy on the corporation under Code Section 14-2-504.

(d) When the reinstatement is effective, it relates back to and takes effect as of the effective date of the administrative dissolution and the corporation resumes carrying on its business as if the administrative dissolution had never occurred.

(e) This Code section shall apply to all corporations administratively dissolved under Code Section 14-2-1421 or any similar former statute, regardless of the date of dissolution.