The Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) has announced the commencement of the implementations of the Companies and Allied Matters Act, 2020 (CAMA 2020), adding that it has introduced a self-service portal.
This was disclosed by the CAC Registrar-General, Alhaji Garba Abubakar, in Abuja on Tuesday. He stated that the self-service portal would be used for end-to-end electronic submission by customers.
Abubakar disclosed that CAMA 2020 went into effect on the 1st of January and that registered companies were given until the 31st of March to update their information.
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“The Honourable Minister approved the Companies Regulation 2021 towards the end of December, 2020 and the approval says it is effective from Jan. 1, 2021,” Abubakar said.
“Already the implementation has started and we have upgraded software that allows you to register your company electronically.
“The law has come with a lot of innovations and changes to some of the old provisions of CAMA 1990, so we needed to make some changes to bring them up-to-date, consistent with the new law.
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“We needed to make necessary changes to the Registration software to accommodate the reforms introduced by the new law, and that took some time.
“The portal started working on Jan. 3 and customers are already using it; so from the comfort of your home or using your own phone, you can now register your company,” he added.
Abubakar also stated that CAC’s new integrated platform reduced service delivery time and process, enabling ease of doing business in the country.
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“For the first time, post-incorporation filings are also being done electronically, in the past they were done manually.
“The upgrade has also introduced a new interface that allows for post-registration; so when you register your company, you can change your directors without having to come to CAC.”
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What you should know
Nairametrics reported in August 2020 that President Muhammadu Buhari had assented to the Companies and Allied Matters Bill 2020, which was passed by the National Assembly.
The Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) Nigeria disclosed in November 2020 that it was set to ensure the full implementation of the Gazetted Company Allied Matters Act (CAMA) 2020 by 1st January 2020.
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Some Provisions under the new CAMA include:
- Provision of single-member/shareholder companies- Section 18 (2) of the new CAMA now makes it possible to establish a private company with only one member or shareholder.
- Appointment of Company Secretary now optional – Going forward, the appointment of a company secretary for a private company is optional.
- Procurement of Common seal not mandatory – Contrary to the previous document that insisted that every company must procure a Common Seal, CAMA 2020, according to Section 98, does not require one
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