LegalBizPro - CAC Business Guides

Do you have a company or business you no longer operate and just lying dormant? Leaving it that way can present many challenges.  Closing a business in Nigeria is not as simple as shutting your shop or taking your website offline. Under Nigerian law, a registered business name or company continues to exist and continues to attract compliance obligations. This goes on until it is formally deregistered with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC). Understanding cessation of business under CAC rules is essential for any entrepreneur, director, or business owner looking to exit cleanly, avoid penalties, and protect themselves from future liability. This guide explains what cessation of business means under Nigerian company law, the legal framework, and practical procedures to close a business or company the right way.  What Is Cessation of Business Under Nigerian Law? Cessation of business refers to the point at which a registered entity, which could be a business name, a limited ...

Do you have a registered company or business name with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) operating for some years and you haven't touched the paperwork for a while? You need to read this article.  This year, the CAC ramped up enforcement, and hundreds of thousands of Nigerian businesses have already been struck off the register for non-compliance. What Does "Struck Off" Actually Mean? When the CAC strikes off your company or business name, it removes your entity from the official register of active businesses in Nigeria. Your business essentially disappears from the government's books, even if you're still physically operating.  Striking off a company is the corporate equivalent of being Blacklisted. The business entity technically still exists in the real world, but the law no longer recognizes it. The consequences are serious. A struck-off company loses many of its characteristics, including its legal personality, meaning it can no longer sue or be sued in...

          Image Credit: cac.gov.ng Reaching the "Approved" stage on the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) online portal is a major milestone. However, many applicants encounter a frustrating roadblock right at the finish line: they click "Download Certificate" or "Download Status Report" and the command yields no response. It triggers a portal error, or opens a blank tab. If your registration status displays as approved but your official electronic documents refuse to download, here is why it happens and how to resolve it. Why Official Documents Fail to Download After Approval When an officer approves your business name, company, or IT application, the CAC portal must automatically generate a digital PDF equipped with a QR Code and electronic signature. The download usually fails due to one of four main reasons: Document Generation Sync Delay or Lag : A CAC official approves the registration but the automated background rendering of your PDF certificate/...

         Image Credit: A Screenshot of CAC Certificate During business, company, or any other kind of registration on the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) online portal, few things can go wrong. However, none are quite as frustrating as having funds deducted from your bank account while the portal continues to display "Unpaid," "Pending," or "Payment Failed." This issue is one of the most common technical glitches faced by applicants in Nigeria, and most users think the best way to solve the issue is making another payment. How wrong! Before you panic and make another payment, here is why this error occurs and the step-by-step process to get your transaction verified and moving forward. Why Payment Mismatches Happen When you initiate a payment on the CAC portal, three separate systems interact: your bank, the payment gateway (Remita), and the CAC portal database. A status mismatch usually happens due to: Network Timeouts : This is a typical occurrence w...