Corporate Affairs Commission Extends Delisting Deadline by Four Months

The Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) has extended the four-month deadline for delisting companies without annual returns. The initial deadline was fixed till January 1, 2024, but extended to April 1, 2024, to give the firms an additional four-month window for companies to submit their annual returns to the Commission.

CAC earlier gave their warnings some weeks back, highlighting that 94,581 will face removal from its register for failing to file annual returns by July 2023. In November, CAC said that the number of defaulting companies had reduced to 91,843.

However, the recent deadline extension is coming after the Company Registration Portal (CRP) experienced some technical difficulties. This was announced in a statement issued by the agency on Thursday, December 28.

The commission also added that the postponement responds to appeals from the Micro, Small, and Medium Enterprise (MSME) sector.

The statement said that all entities registered under the Companies and Allied Matters Act, including Limited Liability Partnerships, Limited Partnerships, Business Names, and Incorporated Trustees, are encouraged to use this extended period to comply with filing their annual returns.

The Statement Reads,

• Further to its earlier notice published on Thursday, November 2, 2023, informing the General Public that it shall commence the full application of the penalties prescribed by the Companies and Allied Matters Act 2020 and the Companies Regulations 2021, ‘against Companies and each of their Directors or Officers for failure to file annual returns, the Commission hereby extends the commencement date from 1 January 2024 to 1 April 2024.”

• This extension has become necessary because of the glitches presently experienced on the Company Registration Portal (CRP) and in deference to appeals from the Micro, ‘Small and Medium Enterprise (MSME) sectors.

• All entities registered under the Companies and Allied Matters Act (Companies, Limited Liability Partnerships, Limited Partnerships, Business Names, and Incorporated Trustees) are encouraged to take advantage of the window provided by this extension to file their annual returns to date with the Commission.

• The General Public should note that this publication/extension of time does not affect the striking-off proceedings commenced by the Commission before the publication of Thursday, November 2, 2023.

• Furthermore, companies, their directors, and officers should note that the commission shall henceforth proceed against the directors and officers of struck-off companies to recover undischarged penalties against them.

Back Story

On December 5, the Corporate Affairs Commission said it would delist 91,843 companies for failing to file annual returns. The commission made this known after it published 91,843 companies that will be delisted on its website. This is 2,738 fewer than the 94,581 names of companies it initially published in August.

Further to its earlier notice of the commencement of striking off the names of Companies from the Register of Companies and published on August 2, 2023, the Commission at this moment notifies the General Public that the list of Companies that have failed to comply with the provisions of the Companies and Allied Matters Act 2020 to file up to date annual returns is now ready for publication under the provisions of Section 692 of the Act.

Companies that filed complete annual returns in response to the earlier publication are advised to confirm their removal from the list of companies to be struck off. The updated list for publication is available on the Commission’s website.

CAC stated that any company that filed complete annual returns but still has its name on the list should send a mail with evidence of filing to [email protected] not later than 30 days.