The Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) has granted an extension for companies to submit their annual returns, allowing for a revised timeline from 1st January to 1st of April 204.

This was disclosed in a statement by the commission on Thursday, 28th December 2023. According to CAC, the extension was granted as a result of glitches on the company’s registration portal (CRP) as well as a deference to the Micro, Small, and Medium Scale Enterprises (MSME) sector.

The CAC recently released a circular, stating their intention to delist 91,843 companies by the month’s end for neglecting to submit their annual returns on the commission’s website.

However, the commission highlighted that the penalties are currently on hold for companies who fall within the bracket of the earlier deadline of January 1, 2023, given that the deadline for submission has been extended to April 1, 2024.

What CAC is saying 

In addition, CAC urged companies to take advantage of the window provided by the extension to file their annual returns with the commission.

• “Further to its earlier notice on Thursday, 2nd November 2023 informing the General Public that it shall commence the full application of the penalties prescribed by the Companies and Allied Matters Acts 2020 and the Companies Registrations 2021 against Companies and each of their Directors or Officers for failures to file annual returns, the  Commission hereby extends the commencement date from 1st of January 2024 to 1st of April 2024. 
• “This extension has become necessary given the glitches presently experienced on the Company Registration Portal (CRP) and in deference to the appeals from the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) sector.
• “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 circular reads.  

Meanwhile, CAC noted that the deadline does not affect those whose penalty proceedings commenced before the date when the first notice was released.

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

Backstory 

Earlier in November, the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) set to delist 91,843 companies from its register for failing to file their annual returns with it.

In a list published on its website, the commission presented the names of 91,843 companies for delisting.
This was 2,738 less than the 94,581 names of companies it initially published in August.

It is also less than the initial 100,000 companies that CAC said it would remove in an earlier announcement in June.