Registering a business in Nigeria is a crucial step for entrepreneurs looking to establish a legal business. The process is regulated by the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), the government agency responsible for business registration and compliance.
Whether you’re starting a sole proprietorship, partnership, or limited liability company, registering your business not only grants you legal recognition but also opens doors to financial opportunities, government contracts, and investor confidence.
This guide will walk you through the step-by-step process of registering a business in Nigeria, ensuring you meet all the requirements and get your business registered within 2 weeks max.
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Why Business Registration is Important in Nigeria
It is illegal to run a business in Nigeria without being registered. Although the government may not always have the resources to actively pursue and prosecute every unregistered business, operating without registration carries significant risks and potential consequences, including fines, legal action, and ultimately, forced closure. You definitely do not want this to happen to your business.
Also, registering your business is for your own benefit as it protects your business name. One of the jobs of the corporate affairs commission is to maintain a registry of all businesses in Nigeria, ensuring that no two businesses share the same name.
Madam Agnes started her catering business in 2015. Her restaurant was one of the most popular restaurants in Alimosho, Lagos state.
If you asked anyone around Alimosho where to get a delicious plate of rice, you would definitely be directed to Agnes Cuisine. The only thing madam Agnes did when she started her business was to print a flex banner with the inscription “Agnes Cuisine” and placed it at the front of her shop.
In 2023, the Federal government announced that every POS operator should register with the CAC. Since Madam Agnes used a POS device in her shop, she started the process of registering her business.
Unfortunately, she could not register Agnes Cuisine because another business registered it in 2022. Now, madam Agnes had to register another name because the company that registered Agnes Cuisine can sue her if they find out that another big business was using the name.
For madam Agnes, it was heartbreaking because she had been using the name since 2015 only for another company to grab the name 7 years later.
Benefits of Registering your Business
Improved chances of Visa approval
As a business owner traveling to foreign countries to do business, your chances of getting your visa approved increases. The embassy checks your corporate account to see the volume of transaction you do or how financially healthy your business is, then they ask your reasons for traveling. If your reason for traveling contributes positively to the economy of the host country, you are likely to get your visa approved.
Without registering your business, the embassy has no reason to believe you actually own a business. If you are able to convince them that you own one, they will see you as someone who doesn’t obey law and order because it’s illegal to run a business in Nigeria without registering it. They might not trust you enough to obey the laws of their country.
Legal protection
Once you are registered, the law, through the Corporate affairs commission, prevents another business from registering a similar name.
You can take it further by registering your business name as a trademark; this gives you complete rights to the name. No other person can register any variation of the name.
Access to Loans/Grants
Occasionally, big companies and foundations give grants to small business owners to help them boost their operations. Unlike loans, grants do not need to be repaid.
In 2024, Cascador gave $50,000 to support three Nigerian businesses. The Tony Elumelu foundation also supports African businesses annually with a grant of $5,000. One of the requirements to qualify for most grants is a registered business.
Banks also give out low interest loans to business owners. To qualify for these loans, you must register your business, have a corporate account and show that your business is profitable enough to repay the loan within the stipulated time frame.
Raise Capital
There are different ways to raise capital as a business. Some of them are;
Equity Financing: This means selling a portion of the business for a specific amount or skill. For example, you could sell an 8% stake in your business for 15 million Naira.
Venture Capital: There are companies looking for businesses that they can invest in so that they can own a portion of the business. These firms are called venture capitalists.
Initial Public Offering (IPO): Offering a percentage of the company to the public. This allows anybody who might be interested to buy a portion of the company. The money raised can then be used to grow the business.
Government support and grants
The federal or state government through its different parastatals (like the BOI) often supports businesses through grants, low interest loans, and training. Most times, only registered businesses are allowed to participate.
Corporate bank account
A corporate account lets you have a bank account in your business name but that’s not all. It has features specifically designed for businesses. One of such features is multi-user access. The multi-user access is a secure way to allow key staff members to have access to the corporate account and keeps track of every transaction they take on the account, this way, you know who made any transaction on the account. A personal savings or corporate account does not have this feature.
Also, when applying for loans or visa as a business entity, your corporate bank account statement will be requested not your personal account.
You cannot own a corporate bank account without registering your business name with CAC.
Partnerships/Contracts from other businesses
There are businesses that will not give you a contract if you are not registered. For example, a reputable property developer will only give contracts to registered businesses because if anything goes wrong with the project, they can sue the company and all the assets the company owns.
An individual can also be sued but remember that operating an unregistered business is illegal. That means a registered business should only work with other registered businesses. Doing otherwise is risky, no reputable company will want to take the risk.
You can sell your business (if you want)
You’ve been running your business for a while, now you want to move on to something else or travel out of the country, instead of closing the business, you can sell it and transfer ownership for cash.
How to Register your Business on CAC with GrowthPal
At GrowthPal, we can help you register your business with the corporate affairs commission without hurdles. You do not need to leave the comfort of your home or office.
Here’s how to do it;
Step 1: Choose a Business name
The first step to registering your business is to have a name in mind. If you do not already have one, you can read our article on how to easily generate a business name.
Step 2: Check for Name Availability
Once you have gotten a name for your business, the next step is to confirm if the name is available for registration. You can read our article on how to do a business name search on CAC.
Step 3: Decide the business type
Now, you have to decide if you want to register a business name or a limited liability company (LTD). We stated the difference between both business types above. You can check it out here if you missed it.
Step 4: Make Payment
Visit the GrowthPal business registration page.
From the list of options available, select the business type you want to register, either business name, limited liability company or a non government organization and click the pay now button.
On the next page, fill in your name, enter the state you reside in, your phone number and email address. Accept the terms and conditions button as seen below.
Then click the place order button.
You can enter your card details to make payment. If you want to pay with transfer, select the transfer option and send payment to the account number displayed on your screen. After making payment, click the I have sent the money option to validate your payment.
Once we receive the payment, we will reach out to you via WhatsApp or email to complete the registration process. Please note that the registration takes about 14 working days to complete.
If you experience any issue along the line, you can reach out to us on WhatsApp here or click the WhatsApp button on the website to send us a message.
We hope this article has been able to guide you on how to register your business name in Nigeria.