Registering a Business with the CAC: Costs, Steps and Documents
What it costs to register a business name or a limited company with the Corporate Affairs Commission, what you need beforehand, and the ongoing obligations people forget about until they are penalised.
Updated 2026-09-10
Registering a business in Nigeria is cheaper and faster than most people expect, and the cost is not where the difficulty lies. The difficulty is choosing the right structure and knowing what obligations follow registration.
This guide covers the practical path. It is general information, not legal advice.
Business name or limited company
A business name (sole proprietorship or partnership under Part B of CAMA 2020) is the cheapest and fastest option. You and the business are the same legal person, which means you are personally liable for its debts. It is the right choice for a small trader, a freelancer or a service business testing an idea.
A limited company (Part B/C, private company limited by shares) is a separate legal person. Your liability is limited to what you have put in. It costs more to set up and more to maintain, and it is what banks, larger clients and investors will expect.
The deciding question is usually not tax — it is whether you need limited liability, or whether a client or funder requires a corporate entity.
Costs
Government fees are set by the CAC and are modest. The figures below are indicative and should be confirmed on the CAC portal before you pay, because they are revised periodically.
| Item | Indicative cost |
|---|---|
| Business name registration | ₦10,000–₦15,000 |
| Limited company registration (₦1m share capital or less) | ₦25,000–₦40,000 |
| Name reservation / search | ₦500–₦1,000 |
| Stamp duty on share capital | 0.75% of share capital, paid to FIRS |
| Certified true copies | ₦5,000–₦10,000 |
Share capital matters for a limited company. The statutory minimum for most private companies is ₦100,000, but specific sectors require more — insurance, lending and some regulated activities have much higher thresholds. Stamp duty is charged on share capital, so incorporating with ₦10m of share capital you do not need is an avoidable cost.
An accredited agent will charge on top. Doing it yourself through the CAC portal is entirely possible and saves the agent fee.
Before you start
- Decide the structure. Business name or limited company. This is hard to undo later.
- Choose two or three names. Search them on the CAC portal first. Names that are too similar to an existing registration, or that imply government patronage, get rejected.
- Get your details in order. For a company: at least two directors and one shareholder (who can be the same people), plus a company secretary for larger entities.
- Have your NIN and BVN ready. Identity verification is required for directors and shareholders.
- Decide your share split. Write it down before you file. Disputes over undocumented share splits are among the most common and most expensive problems in small Nigerian companies.
The steps
- Reserve the name on the CAC portal. Approval usually takes a day or two.
- Complete the registration form with the business address, nature of business, and particulars of owners or directors.
- Upload identification. NIN, BVN, and a means of identification for each officer.
- Pay the filing fees and stamp duty. Stamp duty on share capital is paid to FIRS, not to CAC.
- Receive your certificate and certified true copies. Order the CTCs at the same time; you will need them to open a bank account.
Registration commonly completes within a week when documents are in order.
What registration does not do
This is where people get caught.
It does not register you for tax. You must separately obtain a Tax Identification Number and register with the relevant state revenue authority and FIRS. A TIN is now often issued automatically at incorporation, but confirm it rather than assuming.
It does not open a bank account. You need the certificate, the CTCs, the TIN and identification for each signatory.
It does not register a trademark. A company name protects the name at the CAC only. Brand protection is a separate registration with the Trademarks Registry.
It does not handle sector licensing. Restaurants, schools, clinics, transport and financial services all require additional permits from state or federal regulators.
Ongoing obligations
The reason to understand these before registering is that the penalties for ignoring them exceed the cost of compliance.
- Annual returns. Required every year. Companies that fall behind accumulate penalties and eventually get struck off the register.
- Company income tax and VAT filings. Even a company with no revenue generally has filing obligations.
- PAYE if you employ anyone, remitted to the state revenue authority where the employee works.
- Pension contributions of 10% employer and 8% employee for three or more staff.
- Notification of changes. New directors, share transfers and address changes must be filed.
If you are a sole trader
You can trade under your own name without registering anything. Registration becomes worthwhile when you want a business bank account, when a client asks for a registered entity, or when you want the name protected.
Note that under the 2026 tax rules, the first ₦800,000 of chargeable income is taxed at 0%, which means many small businesses have no income tax liability in their early years. That is not an exemption from filing — it is a nil liability, and the filing is still expected.
Where to get help
The CAC portal handles the whole process. Accredited agents are useful if you are short of time or your structure is unusual. A chartered accountant is worth the fee once you have employees or meaningful revenue, and is considerably cheaper than resolving a filing problem later.