Registering your #business is not as difficult as people think. You really don’t need a lawyer or an accountant to help you with your #business registration. On the #Corporate Affairs Commission (#CAC) website, the steps to take are clearly stated.

The Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) was established by the Companies and Allied matters act, which was promulgated in 1990 to regulate the formation and management of companies in Nigeria. CAC is in charge of registering businesses in the country.

They have offices all over the country. CAC currently has a main website and four other alternative websites including www.cac.gov.ng www.cacnigeria.net, www.cacnigeria.com, www.cacnigeria.org and http://new.cac.gov.ng.

Requirements for each type of business registration are listed on the site. For example, the requirements for incorporating a business name include availability and reservation of name, payment of appropriate stamp duty to Federal Board of Inland Revenue, submission of memorandum and articles of association together with statutory forms for verification and assessment, payment of filing fees at the Corporate Affairs Commission.

You can choose to either register online or at any CAC office near you. Necessary forms can also be viewed and downloaded online. When registering a business name, the first step is to check for the availability of name. This costs about N500 and you will be required to choose two business names. Ensure that you choose a unique name for your business.

Once your name is available, you can now proceed with your registration. Rather than visiting a CAC office, you can register online on the CAC Corporate Registration Portal. All you need to do is create an account and proceed with your registration.

You can conduct name search, registration and post incorporation online. Sometimes, certain business names are declined if they are:

• Capable of misleading as to the nature and extent of its activities
• Undesirable, offensive or contrary to public policy
• Identical with or similar to the name of a registered company unless the registered company is in the course of dissolution and consents in writing
• Contain the phrase “Chamber of Commerce” unless it is a company limited by guarantee
• Would violate any existing trade mark or business name unless with the consent of the trade mark or business name owner
• Would violate any incorporated trustee unless with consent of the trustees

Fees for some services include:

S/N	SUBJECT	FEES in Naira (₦)
50	Reservation of Name	500
51	Registration of business name	10,000.00
52	Filing of notice of change of business name	5,000.00
53	Filing of notice of change in business address	1,000.00
54	Filing of notice of change in proprietorship	1,000.00
55	Filing of annual return	1,000.00
56	Filing of notice of cessation of business	1,000.00
57	Filing of other documents (miscellaneous)	1,000.00
58	Search on business name file	1,000.00 per business name file
59	Certified true copy of business name certificate of registration	5,000.00
60	Certified true copies of other documents	2,000.00 per document

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