CAC Registration — Dated Official Fees and a Filing Checklist
Separate dated CAC filing fees from taxes and professional charges, choose the appropriate entity, and verify current documents and post-registration obligations.
Updated 2026-09-28
Use the Corporate Affairs Commission's official website to reach its current registration services and resource library. This guide is a planning checklist, not a guaranteed quote, processing timetable or recommendation that one structure suits every small business.
Choose the structure before pricing the filing
A business-name registration is different from incorporating a company and does not by itself create a separate limited-liability company. A company limited by shares has a different legal and governance structure; limited liability does not remove personal guarantees or every possible personal liability.
Companies, business names, limited liability partnerships, limited partnerships and incorporated trustees are distinct categories. Check the structure that matches the activity, ownership, liability needs and any sector-specific requirements. Do not select solely on the lowest filing charge.
Confirm current rules for members, directors, secretaries, beneficial ownership and identification for the chosen entity. The previous statement that every company needs at least two directors was too broad; do not ignore applicable small-company exceptions or changes in the rules. This guide does not decide whether your proposed entity qualifies for an exception.
Official fee evidence checked for this guide
The CAC New Schedule of Fees, gazetted 29 May 2025 provides the entries below. CAC's 30 August 2025 notice deferred implementation to 1 October 2025. 1
These are dated schedule entries, not a claim that a complete current application will cost exactly this amount. Check subsequent notices and the actual portal assessment before paying.
| Service/category | Fee in the cited schedule | PDF location |
|---|---|---|
| Ordinary business-name reservation | ₦1,000 | Page 6, Business Names, item 1 |
| Business-name registration and CTC of registration documents | ₦20,000 | Page 6, Business Names, item 3 |
| Business-name annual returns and other post-registration/miscellaneous filings | ₦5,000 each | Page 6, Business Names, item 5 |
| Ordinary name reservation for small/private companies other than small | ₦1,000 | Page 3, Companies, item 1 |
| Incorporation with share capital: small/private companies other than small | ₦10,000 for every ₦1,000,000 or part thereof | Page 3, Companies, item 4 |
| Separate company CTC documents/extracts | ₦5,000 each | Page 4, Companies, item 23 |
Restricted-name applications and other categories have separate entries. Do not apply the private-company incorporation formula to public companies, companies limited by guarantee, partnerships or trustees.
Example arithmetic: ordinary business-name reservation plus registration in this schedule totals ₦21,000. This is not an all-in quote. For a qualifying private-company application with ₦1.5m issued share capital, the cited incorporation fee formula gives two ₦1m-or-part units, or ₦20,000 for that fee alone. It is not advice that ₦1.5m is the correct capital for your activity.
Stamp duties, other taxes, sector approvals, professional fees and other applicable charges must be checked separately. Ask an agent to separate official assessed amounts from professional charges. A higher invoice is not automatically proof of an unlawful fee; request the itemisation and supporting assessment.
Prepare the application
- Confirm the activity, entity type, ownership and any regulated-sector capital/licensing requirements.
- Check name availability through the official service; a proposed name is not guaranteed approval.
- Prepare the address, officer/proprietor/member information, ownership details and identity evidence required by the current workflow.
- Confirm the share structure or partnership arrangements and responsibilities before filing.
- Obtain the portal assessment and distinguish filing fees, tax assessments and optional professional charges.
- Submit through the verified official channel, retain receipts and application references, and respond to any queries.
- Check issued records for errors and retain copies securely.
A reservation, application or payment receipt is not itself a completed registration. No one-day or one-week completion promise is made here. Requirements can differ by applicant and entity; do not send identity documents to an unverified intermediary.
After registration
Build a calendar from the obligations that actually apply rather than assuming the certificate completes every compliance step:
- CAC filings: annual returns, ownership/control disclosures and notifications of relevant changes, according to the applicable entity rules.
- Tax: confirm the identifier and registrations already issued, then any remaining federal/state registrations, filing, payment or withholding duties. A tax identifier is not proof that every obligation is complete.
- Employees: assess payroll withholding, pension and other employer obligations using the applicable rules and contracts. The relevant authority is not necessarily determined solely by the physical work address.
- Sector approvals: incorporation is not a banking, health, education or other operating licence.
- Banking and brand protection: confirm the bank's current documentation requirements; name reservation or company registration is not the same as trademark registration.
The take-home calculator models a specified employee-pay scenario. It is not a company-income-tax calculator and does not establish a sole trader's complete tax position, filing exemptions or company eligibility for relief.
Correction — 28 September 2026
The earlier guide used unsupported registration-price ranges and completion times, overgeneralised director and payroll requirements, and could be read as blanket advice to trade without registration. Those statements are withdrawn. The fee table now identifies a government schedule, exact categories and source locations, while directing readers to verify the current assessment and obligations.