The responsible agency for company incorporation in Nigeria, the Corporate Affairs Commission (“CAC”), continues to innovate and undertake investment in technological infrastructure to enhance speedy company registration and national development. Since 2020, incorporation of a company in Nigeria can be completed in 24 hours using the CAC online portal and fast track procedure.
Since the adoption of digital registration portal, the number of companies registered weekly by the CAC is averagely above 2,000 companies. Also, local and foreign investors have witnessed reduction in physical contact with CAC officials when undertaking both pre and post incorporation filings.
National Identity Number Card as Means of Identification for Company Registration
Until recently, the valid means of Identification of shareholders and directors for registration of a company with the CAC were all forms of federal government-issued means of identification such as the data page of International Passport, Driver’s Licence, National Identity Card and Permanent Voter’s Card.
However, effective from today 1st December 2022, only the National Identification Number (“NIN”) Card will be acceptable as valid means of identification of any person (shareholder or director) seeking to register a company in Nigeria. The NIN is just like the social security number of a United States’ citizen.
In a statement by the Registrar of the CAC, Alhaji Garba Abubakar, on Monday, 28th November 2022, in Abuja during the monthly reform seminar organized by the Bureau of Public Service Reform (BPSR) themed: “Current Reforms, Innovations, and Challenges of the Corporate Affairs Commission, and Their Impact on the Growth of Nigerian Economy”, the CAC boss said: “If you don’t have a NIN, it means you can’t register your company, The essence is to verify the integrity of the data we are collecting.”
In view of the above, the NIN will replace signatures which has, before now, been required of applicants for business and company registration. Essentially, the NIN will replace signature of shareholders, directors and individual company secretaries.
Will Foreigners be Required to present NIN Card before Registering a Company in Nigeria?
It depends. A foreigner who is overseas and uses a foreign address for company incorporation will not be required to present NIN Card as part of incorporation requirements. However, a foreigner who is resident in Nigeria will be required to present NIN Card before he or she can register a company in Nigeria.
Where can foreigners register for NIN in Nigeria?
The National Identity Management Commission (“NIMC”) is the federal government agency primarily responsible for the registration and issuance NIN and keeping of database of registered Nigerians and foreigners who are resident in Nigeria. See HOW TO PRE-REGISTER FOR NIN BY YOURSELF.
See also, the procedure and supporting documents for registering for NIN in Nigeria.
Reasons for the New Policy to make mandatory the NIN Card
The Registrar of the CAC stated that the major reason the CAC opted for the use of NIN is because the security of the NIN Card cannot be compromised, unlike the National Identity Card, International Passport, National Identity Card and the Driver’s License, which according to him, could easily be cloned.
Introduction of Beneficial Ownership Register
CAC launched a Beneficial Ownership Register (“BOR”) platform. The platform will make it easy to search for information on persons with significant control (PSC). PSCs are persons who have 5% or above shares of a company whether listed in the company’s records as shareholders or not. The CAC Registrar stated that “The BOR will provide a simple, precise, and user-friendly environment for the search and provision of information on persons with significant control (PSC), added that it is accessible in real-time via http://bor.cac.gov.ng,”
The BOR portal is an automated platform where records of PSC collated by CAC during company registration or post-incorporation filings are stored and accessible both to the general public and regulators. The BOR platform offers a search function and information on PSC in accordance with the international standard of beneficiary ownership data standards (BODS) under the guidance of the World Bank. A search of the BOR platform can be initiated with any or all of the following parameters: entity’s name, entity’s registration number, PSC first name, or PSC surname.
YOU CAN ALSO READ MORE ABOUT COMPANY REGISTRATION IN NIGERIA IN THE LINK BELOW:
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About KORIAT & CO.
We are a commercial law firm in Lagos, Nigeria with a network of lawyers and consultants in Kenya, Ghana and Rwanda.
The above article is not legal advice and does not automatically make our readers our clients unless they specifically instruct us to act or represent them in any way.
Please contact Koriat & Co. through admin@koriatlaw.com or 09067842241 if you require additional information about or assistance in incorporating a company or making the application for a business licence.
