HOW TO REGISTER A BUSINESS NAME IN NIGERIA

Learn how to register your business name in Nigeria with the right legal bodies and carry out your business activities and transactions without fear since your business name has been registered and is therefore recognized by the law in Nigeria.

If you have a new business in Nigeria or you have newly moved your business to Nigeria, there is a need for you to register your business name with the CAC (Corporate Affairs Commission).

The CAC is the recognized body that is saddled with the responsibilities of registering a company in Nigeria and guiding the activities of businesses.

If you want to grow your business and take it to the next level here in Nigeria, there is a need for you to register your business with a business name.

Here in this post, I will take you through a simple process of registering a business name here in Nigeria.

Right now, registering your business name in Nigeria is a very straight-forward and easy process that any adult can do by themselves.

This was not the case many years ago, but thanks to CAC, business owners can now register their business names with ease in Nigeria.

The CAC has simplified the process of registering a business name in Nigeria even more in recent times.

You don’t have to go to the CAC office, all you need to do is visit their website.

All you need to do to complete your business name registration can be done on the CAC portal from the comfort of your sofa. Yeah, it’s that easy.

Below is a step by step procedure of how you can register a business name in Nigeria:

Explanation of how to register a business name in Nigeria:

1. Table of Contents

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   How to register a business name in Nigeria – Business name availability

The first step in registering your company in Nigeria is to register your business name.

This is where you decide what name you want to choose for your business and register your company with that particular name on the CAC website.

But first of all, you have to ensure the name is available on the CAC site because thousands of people register their businesses daily in Nigeria.

On the CAC website, there is a public search tool. The search tool is free.

Once you’ve decided on the name you want to use to register your business, you would enter the name on the website and wait to see if the name is available or not.

If the website search confirms that there is no pre-existing business using the name you’ve chosen, then you must conduct an official search using the CAC online portal.

This search will cost you N500 only. The portal will confirm the name availability and permits reservation of business names in Nigeria for 90 days.

2. Next, Apply for name registration

Now, your business name has been approved and reserved. The next step you would take is to submit your completed statutory forms.

Like i sasi, you can also complete this step online without going to the CAC office.

You are required to attach two passport photographs with the form. If your business is a partnership, you would need the passport photographs of your partner/s.

To complete this step, you are required for you to provide the following documents/information:

• Your newly approved Name of the Business
• General Nature of the Business
• Address of the Business
• Name, Address, Occupation and other details of the Proprietors of the Business
• Signature of the Proprietors/business owners.

If the name does not get approved, you would have to obtain another reservation form and re-submit it along with it 2 business name options and wait for the approval.

3. How to register your business name in Nigeria – Payment of CAC Filing Fees –

After you’ve submitted the application form for registering a business name in Nigeria, you must pay for the application fee.

The payment of the fees can be done online or can be completed in a bank and the fee is just a token. Below is a breakdown:

Reservation of Name – N500

Business Name Registration Form – N250

Fee for Registration of Business Name – N10,000

Now that you know how to register a business name in Nigeria, below, I’ll answer some frequently asked questions about business registration in Nigeria.

How do I start a business name in Nigeria?

If you want to start a business name is Nigeria, it is literarily the same thing as registering a business name.

It is very easy to register a business name in Nigeria. I have already explained the process above. Take your time to go through the steps one after the other.

You should be able to register your business name online on the CAC website.

What is the cost of registering a business name in Nigeria?

The cost of registering a business name in Nigeria is as little as N10,500. However, you may budget N12,000 for the whole process of business name registration. With this N12,000 budgeted, you’ll be surprised that you may even come back with some change.

What’s the difference between registering a company and business name in Nigeria?

A company name is selected upon incorporation and creates a separate legal entity, distinct from its owners. Whereas a business name is selected when carrying on a business under a name other than the true owners’ name, no legal entity is created and there is no limitation on liability.

How do I reserve a business name?

Like I explained earlier, once the CAC website search confirms that there is no pre-existing business using the name you’ve chosen, then you must conduct an official search using the CAC online portal.

This search will cost you N500 only. The portal will confirm the name availability and permits reservation of business names in Nigeria for 90 days.

Benefits of registering a business name in Nigeria

Registering your business in Nigeria gives you:

• Opportunity to apply for loans and grants. These opportunities will be difficult to access by businesses that are not registered.
• It becomes easy for you to hire team members. You can even recruit from NYSC camp and pay a limited amount of salary compared to if you employed them directly.
• You can open an account in your company name
• You have the opportunity to enter incubation and accelerator programmes for entrepreneurs
• Your customers take your business seriously and can trust you.
• You also get legal liability protection, etc.