Are you ready to embark on the exciting journey of establishing your business in Nigeria? Registering your business name with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) is a crucial step towards legal recognition and protection. In this guide, we’ll walk you through the process, providing valuable insights and tips to ensure a smooth and successful registration.
Creating a business and boasting of a reliable name is quite uneasy, especially in Nigeria but trying to get that amazing business name officially registered is much easier. Say hello to Nigeria’s CAC (Corporate Affairs Commission).
Nigeria’s Corporate Affairs Commission has made the business name registration process more faster and efficient, and it is even done without the need, help, or assistance of an ordained lawyer of the law. But before you begin the process, you must know your business
Thanks to legitimate online platforms like Registr by Okiki, business owners now can register their business names easily. Have it in mind that, the Agency is powered by the Company and Allied Matters Act 1990, Pursuant to section 659 to register business operations in Nigeria.
Why Registering Your Business Name Matters
Before we dive into the nitty-gritty of the registration process, let’s explore why registering your business name with CAC holds immense significance. Firstly, it provides legal protection, preventing others from using the same name within your industry. This exclusivity fosters trust among customers and partners.
Company business categories in Nigeria include:
- Business Name Registration
- Private Limited Company (LTD)
- Public Limited Company (PLC)
- Company Limited by Guarantee (LTD/GTE)
- Unlimited Company (ULTD)
- Incorporated Trustee
The above aforementioned categories of business, companies in Nigeria are the criteria for one of your business. That means, your business must fall under any of the categories, as a start.
Be it small or medium-scale Entrepreneurs, sole proprietorships, and partnerships, but they are all under the business name of a private limited company, registering your business makes it unique and outstanding!
However, there are some stunning steps that you must undergo to get your company business name registered. One of the major steps to take first is to check the name, then reserve the name, upload the necessary documents, and complete the payments. You can also save yourself the stress and use Registr by Okiki to get your certificate within 2 weeks.
First Step: Sign Up or Log In to Your CAC Account
The process commences with the simple act of signing up for a CAC account if you’re a newcomer. For those already in possession of an account, logging in is the key to initiating the growth journey. While registering your business may not guarantee immediate growth, the benefits it offers are undeniably substantial.
The online portal for business registration facilitates the acquisition of a unique business name, a crucial step in establishing your brand identity.
Second step: Check for Business Name Availability
This is so important, that if you do not think outside the box for a little while, you’ll get frustrated all through the process. In order to get your business company name going forward, you must think of a unique and attractive name, that defines the states and how your business works.
All thanks to CAC, for providing an online portal for that, it makes it much easier and simpler.
You will pay a small amount to obtain CAC Form 1. Before reserving your business name, please note that there are some names that you are not expected to use. They include: “Chamber of Commerce”, “Federal”, “National”, “Regional”, “State”, “Government”, “Municipal” or “Chartered”, “Cooperative” or the words “Building Society”; or “Group” or “Holding”.
Name availability results now take between 24 to 36 hours. You will receive an email on the status of your application as soon as an update is available. Remember, you can register the business as a sole practitioner or as a partnership with another individual.
Third step: Reserve the Chosen Business Name
Reserving a business name now involves just one path and that is ONLINE. Before now, you could register your business by visiting CAC’s office but it has now been limited to strictly taking place online. Users can continue testing new names and once a name is available, you can go ahead to reserve it promptly to prevent others from claiming it. This crucial step incurs a nominal fee of N500 + charges of N150 + 7.5% of the charges as VAT.
If you were successful and found a name that hasn’t been used by anyone. Go ahead and reserve it for yourself and begin the process/procedures immediately, before someone else does!
One very good trick is to visit the CAC registered company directory and search for your preferred name to know if someone else is already using it and also know how you can tweak the name to reduce your expenses.
Fourth step: Payment and Pre-Registration Form
Congratulations on making it this far! Now, meticulously fill out the Statutory Form (FORM BN1) and submit it. Post-submission, focus on completing the payment, keeping in mind that business name registration costs N10,000 + charges of N150 + 7.5% of the charges as VAT and other types of company registration costs higher than that.
Congratulations on making it this far! Now, meticulously fill out the Statutory Form (FORM BN1) and follow the prompts till you get to the point where you’ll be required to upload some documents.
Fifth Step: Upload Required Documents
The time has come to upload all the necessary and required documents. Below are the documents to be uploaded:
- Name Availability Report – (It is the same as the Approval Note).
- Proficiency Certificate (where applicable)
- Means of identification
- Proof of address
- Signature
- Name search payment Receipt.
When you are done uploading the required document, you will be given the opportunity to review your information and documents. Once you confirm that everything is okay, you can then click on the make payment button, and then, you will be redirected to Paga’s page to complete the payment and thereafter be redirected back to CAC’s website where you will see that application is now pending review.
Keep in mind that business name registration costs N10,000 (That’s how much you’ll pay on Paga’s website).
Final Step: Post-Registration
Upon successful registration, the CAC rewards proprietors with essential documents which will be available for download within 7 days after which you will be asked to pay N10,000 for any attempt to download the files:
- Original Certificate of Registration of the Business Name
- CTC of the Application for the Registration of the Business Name etc.
Frequently Asked Question – FAQ of CAC Registration
Question: What is the CAC Registration Number?
Answer: The CAC registration number is a unique identification number given to businesses registered in Nigeria with the Corporate Affairs Commission under the Companies and Allied Matters Act of 2020. The CAC registration number is very important and according to the law, must be written or printed boldly on all the documents and means of identification of the business or company.
Question: How to check my CAC Registration Number?
Answer: The CAC registration number is always included in all the documents issued after a business or company has been duly or successfully registered with CAC. You can find the CAC registration number of the CAC-issued certificate, memorandum of association, and article of associate. It is written as BN XXXXXXX or RC XXXXXXX. The BN on the certificate is the prefix of the CAC registration number of a business and it stands for Business Name (to differentiate between a registered business and a registered company.) and RC is the prefix of the CAC registration number of a registered company and it stands for Registered Company.
Question: How to get a CAC Registration Number?
Answer: To get a CAC registration number, you must register a business or a company with CAC. Kindly ensure to read the main article to learn more able CAC registration and if you need help with your registration, you can use Registr by Okiki to avoid the stress and just receive your Credentials in 7 – 14 days.
Question: How to Confirm or Verify the CAC registration number?
Answer: To verify a CAC registration number, CAC has provided a portal to verify the existence of all the duly registered businesses, companies, organizations, and bodies in Nigeria. Simply visit https://search.cac.gov.ng/home
- Enter the CAC registration number of the entity you want to verify
- Click “Search”
- On the result page, click on the business name, company, or incorporated trustees tab.
- If the number you entered is a valid number of an entity registered with CAC in Nigeria, you will see the RC or BN number with the registered name and address.
I hope this is helpful to you, if yes type it in the comment section.