The Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) has approved free business name registration for 3,500 small businesses across Nigeria’s 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT). This announcement was made by Registrar-General Hussaini Magaji at an event marking the Commission’s 35th anniversary in Abuja.
The initiative aims to lower barriers to formalisation for micro and small enterprises by removing initial registration fees for a limited number of qualifying businesses. It directly targets the cost of starting a business, an element that often discourages informal operators from entering the formal economy.
According to Magaji, the free registration slots will be allocated across all states of the Federation and the FCT to ensure broad geographic coverage and to avoid concentration in specific regions. The Commission stated that this distribution is intended to promote inclusive participation.
The CAC’s announcement emphasizes the importance of formal registration as a prerequisite for accessing government services, credit facilities, and other structured economic support systems. The Commission believes that facilitating business registration for small operators will expand their opportunities for financing and official engagement with public and private institutions.
“In the spirit of the celebration, the CAC Boss announced Free Business Name Registration for 3,500 small businesses, to be distributed across the 36 States of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory,” the official statement reads.
Formalisation through registration is a longstanding policy goal for economic planners because it helps integrate informal business activity into the regulated economic structure. Registered businesses are typically eligible for tax incentives, business support programs, and legal protections that are not available to unregistered ventures.
This latest offer builds on previous CAC and government efforts to reduce registration costs. In 2025, a larger initiative jointly led by CAC and the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN) targeted free business registration for 250,000 MSMEs nationwide as part of a broader drive to formalise small enterprises and improve access to finance.
The CAC’s strategy also includes a digital transformation of its registration processes. The Commission has developed online tools and systems that allow business owners to register names and complete documentation remotely, reducing the need for in-person visits to regional offices. Digital automation is part of the Commission’s effort to improve turnaround times and make registration more accessible.
The Commission’s commitment to expanding access to formal business status aligns with broader national objectives to strengthen Nigeria’s small business ecosystem. Formalisation can help increase business visibility, support compliance with the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA), and enhance investor confidence.
However, the CAC has also made clear that it will enforce compliance standards. In recent reforms, it deregistered hundreds of thousands of inactive companies to maintain the integrity of the national business register. That cleanup was part of a push to ensure registered entities are active contributors to the economy.
In summary, the CAC’s free registration initiative for 3,500 small businesses is a targeted measure to reduce entry costs, support formalisation, and strengthen economic participation among micro and small enterprises. The success of this program will depend on effective distribution, clear eligibility criteria, and continued reforms to streamline registration processes.
