Do you know that one of the ways customers and investors can find you as a business owner, talk to you, and recommend your brand is through a business name? In plain terms, a business name is a trademark or title under which a person or other legal entities conduct trade, or simply put, business. Therefore, learning how to register a business name in Nigeria or any other country is key for all legal business operations.
Furthermore, the first thing a customer interacts with is the business name, and it has to convey the right message at all times.
In this article, you’d learn how to register a business name in Nigeria; the details, the necessary documents, and a step-by-step guide on how to register your business name. Also see – How to start a small scale business in Nigeria.
Why is Your Business Name Important?
For a business or company to thrive in Nigeria, one of its initial priorities must be to get and register a proper business name. As we mentioned earlier, this business name is very important to define your business, create an identity among competitors in the same business, and also to impress and attract investors.
As a result, registering the right business name plays an essential role in the growth and publicity of your business. Furthermore, your business name will help clients identify your brand on payment platforms and make payments from anywhere in the world.
How to Register a Business Name
As a business owner looking for a relatively affordable way to legalize and advance your business, registering a business name with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) is an easy way to go. In Nigeria, the CAC is a legal body responsible for registering business names in Nigeria.
Here are 5 basic steps on how to register your business name in Nigeria;
1. Name Search
This process confirms that your proposed business name is not currently in use by another business. To achieve this, the business name you want to register will be filtered with all business names existing on the official CAC website.
The name search process is really important while registering your business name in Nigeria because two businesses cannot operate in the same country with the same business name.
2. Check For Availability and Name Reservation
In the second step, you must apply for confirmation and approval by CAC that your proposed name is not being used. This is the ‘availability check and reservation of name’ phase of your business name registration.
To achieve this, you will pay a fixed fee and submit two proposed names to the CAC. If approved, then you can go ahead with the registration of your business name
3. Input Necessary Details
The Statutory form for registration requires you to submit certain business particulars. In addition, you’d also be expected to provide a number of documents.
These necessary details for registering your business name in Nigeria include:
- Approved business name
- General nature of the business;
- Full address of the principal place of business and every other subsidiary place of business;
- Proposed date of commencement of the business;
- Passport-size photographs of the owners
- Proficiency certificate (If required).
Upon successful completion of this step, you can proceed to make the necessary payment. Subsequently, you can print the required documentation, attach passport photographs, and sign.
4. Document Upload
Next, the application form for the registration of your business name and other relevant documents must be uploaded. The CAC will review the documentation, and if all is in order, you will get a notification that the application has been approved.
After this, your business certificate will be ready for printing.
5. Certificate of Registration
Finally, after completing the steps above, you can download the following documents for your newly registered business:
- Original Certificate of registration of the business name
- Certified True Copy (CTC) of the Application for the Registration of the business name
Please note that it is important to download and keep these documents safe in a cloud storage that you can access subsequently. This is because the CAC charges for subsequent downloads after an initial period.
Conclusion
As a business owner, your business should move from a local one to a legally recognized and approved business. The way you can achieve this is to register your business name. A good business name will provide positive first impressions about your business, and provide your target audience with a quick summary of what your business is about.
Finally, formal recognition of your business only comes after you have registered your business name with the CAC. Remember, names have power.
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