Attention Budding Entrepreneurs: Business Registration Tips in Nigeria.

 Wednesday, 16 Oct 2013 14:02:53 GMT | By Ayodele Weke

Are you a business owner or thinking of establishing a business in Nigeria? Then the first step is to register it with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC). It is the Agency empowered by the Company and Allied Matters Act 1990, to register business operations in Nigeria. This article provides easy steps to registering a business in Nigeria.

The Nigerian law requires that every business in Nigeria is registered. The categories for business registration in Nigeria are listed below:

• Business Name Registration
• Private Limited Company (LTD)
• Public Limited Company (PLC)
• Company Limited by Guarantee (LTD/GTE)
• Unlimited Company (ULTD)
• Incorporated Trustee 

This article will focus on 'Business Name' and 'Private Limited Company' Registration. This is because these are the two most popular and most relevant to business owners in Nigeria. Apart from being a requirement of the law, business registration is of utmost importance for the following reasons:

• It helps secure the company name before another business takes it. So early registration helps secure your choice of name.
• Registering the business gives authenticity and credibility to the business.
• It is easy to open a corporate bank account with a registered business name. The real importance of having a corporate account is that it renders the companies an air of professionalism. It also allows you to get paid by your customers electronically.

Now that you understand the importance of registering your company, how do you proceed to register your business in Nigeria? The steps although simple, could be sometimes tedious. Here are some practical steps to guide you through the process.

Step 1 – Proceed to the Corporate Affairs Commission Office nearest to you to submit your business name for a name search. You will be asked to obtain the CAC form 1 for N200.

Take a photocopy of the completed form before submitting, as this is what you will bring back to locate your submitted form.

After submission, you can return in a week's time to confirm the name availability. If the name is not available, you will have to repeat the process all over again until you find one that is available.

Note: In terms of name choices, if you go for popular ones then you there's a good chance its already taken, so choose something unique and uncommon.

Step 2 - When it is confirmed that the name you registered is available, the next step would be to start the registration process immediately. You will have to obtain the Business Name registration form for N250.

If the business is a Limited Company, you will get the set of Company Incorporation forms for N500. Download the PDF of the detailed requirements for Incorporated Trustees under Part C of CAMA No.1 of 1990.

Step 3 – Take the completed form to the Federal High Court or State High Court for attestation.  After the form is attested, you have to submit it back to Corporate Affairs Commission.

A final payment for the registration is then made to the corporate affairs commission's UBA Bank account. A form for this payment is usually available at all the CAC offices, so you don’t need to go elsewhere to obtain this.

After you successfully complete these steps, your business will be up for registration and certification.  For the business name – return after 8 working days or so to pick up your certificate. However if your business is a Limited Company, your certificate will be sent to you by post when it is ready. Depending on the resources at your disposal, these steps can be completed on your own quite easily.