How to register your Company in Nigeria

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How_to_Incorporate_a_Business_Register_-_The_Company_Formation_Guide

In Nigeria, the Corporate Affairs Commission (C.A.C) is the governmental body responsible for registering business names and companies.  It is important to note that registering a company is not as difficult as many will believe if you understand the procedure.

Registration of all companies is handled by the corporate Affairs commission (C.A.C) established by the Companies and Allied Matters Act 2004.

In order to provide you with an in-depth knowledge on Company incorporation with C.A.C, I have provided information/manual that will assist you in understanding the basis of company registration in Nigeria. Click here

PROCEDURE FOR COMPANY REGISTRATION

Registering a business in Nigeria can be achieved by incorporation of a company or registering a Business name.

The first step to registering a company is to choose two unique names for your company. An example is Life Style Consulting Ltd or Unique Goal Nigeria Ltd.

The next step is acquiring the Availability Form from C.A.C which cost N 500 (Five Hundred Naira) only. Conduct a name search and if one of your chosen names is found suitable and unregistered, it will be assigned to you and reserved for 60 days. (Note. You must endeavor to choose a unique name that is unlikely to be similar with any other registered business name)

The next step is to complete registration by filling and filing the necessary CAC forms.

DIRECTORS OF THE COMPANY

It is a requirement of the Law, Companies and Allied Matters Act 2004 for a company to have at least 2 Directors.

In view of this, you need to choose your directors during the time you are filling the Incorporation forms.

Another requirement is a minimum number of 2 members of the Company. A member of the Company is the body of persons that make up the Company. For a private Company, a minimum of two and maximum of 50 people as members is required to start a Private Company.

After acquiring the CAC forms, you must then fill the necessary information.

FILLING THE CAC FORMS

  1. The proposed name of the Company must be written in the Column for Company Name.
  2. The full names, ages and residential addresses of all the directors must be supplied
  3. The address of the proposed company which must be within Nigeria
  4. The Share capital of the Company must be stated on the form CAC 2 (the Authorized share capital of the Company)
  5. The name of the Company Secretary must also be stated in the form as all companies must have a company secretary.

DOCUMENTS TO BE SUPPLIED

  1. Means of identification for all the members of the Company must be provided for filing.
  2. Certificate of proficiency

AFTER FILLING THE C.A.C FORMS, THE NEXT STEPS ARE;

  1. Pay the necessary filing fees at C.A.C. (Including stamp duties)
  2. On completion of registration, you wait for your certificates of Incorporation to be ready for collection.

Note: A minor (someone below the age of 18) can only be a director in a company provided that there are two other adults listed as directors.

Olusola Adeusi

08037032004

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