The Registrar-General’s Department of the Ministry of Justice is urging all businesses, companies and partnerships to update their records, and file their annual reports into the new electronic e-Registrar by June 30th to facilitate proper monitoring of businesses in Ghana.
A statement from the ministry copied to Citi Business News warned that failure to do so will attract a penalty from August 1, 2016.
The ministry further stated that the Registrar General will now enforce diligently the rules to ensure keen compliance by members.
Speaking to Citi Business News after the release of the statement, acting registrar of the Registrar-General’s Department Jemima Oware emphasized that filing of annual returns is mandatory and must be adhered to by all businesses, companies and partnerships.
Below is the full Statement
PRESS RELEASE
ENFORCEMENT OF PENALTY
The Registrar-General’s Department on the 15th and 20th April, 2015 as well as 29th February, 2016, published a Press Statement in the National Dailies and the Department’s website www.rgd.gov.gh urging Businesses/ Companies and Partnerships to update their records and file their Annual reports by 30th June, 2016.
Following that directive, some Companies/ Partnerships and Businesses have complied whilst a whole lot more Businesses/ Companies and Partnerships have not as yet updated their records into our new electronic e-Registrar.
As the Registrar of Companies in Ghana ,we wish to re-iterate that the filing of Annual Returns is mandatory as stated in Section 122 (1 & 2) of the Companies Act, 1963, (Act179), “that a Company shall file its Annual Returns eighteen (18) months after Incorporation and once, at least in every year thereafter”.
Under section 6(1) of the Incorporated Private Partnership Act, 1962, once in every year the Partners shall deliver to the Registrar for registration a statement in the prescribed form renewing the registration”
We wish to draw the attention of Companies and Partnerships to the penalty regime in the Companies/Partnerships Acts that the Registrar General will now have to enforce.
Per section 122(7) where a Company defaults in complying with this section, the Company and every Officer of the Company who is in default is liable to a fine not exceeding twenty-five penalty units for everyday during which the default continues, the same applies to Partnerships whilst that of Business Names would lapse completely
Under section 26 of the Interpretation Act (Act 729) 2009, the imposition of a fine as a penalty for the contravention of a provision in the enactment, shall be expressed in terms of a number of penalty units.
One penalty unit is defined as equivalent to the amount of cedis specified in the Second Schedule to this Act as being equal to Gh₵12.00.
Businesses/Companies and Partnerships must note that, the import of this provision is that they would be paying a penalty in addition to the fees they would be required to pay mandatorily for the filing of their Annual Returns yearly.
By the foregoing definition therefore 25 penalty units would amount to Gh₵300.00 for each day that the default continues with effect from Monday 1st August, 2016
This regime of penalty payment would continue until 31st December, 2016 and thereafter when the Department would start the process of striking out the names of Businesses/Companies and Partnerships that have failed to comply with the Department’s directive as stated above and in conformity with the Acts we administer.
We are by this publication commencing the serialization of the names of Businesses/ Companies and Partnerships which have not as yet updated their records in the new electronic database to comply with the provisions as stated above.
Businesses must note that the update of records is FREE apart from the fees to be paid for renewing the Businesses or filing of Annual Returns for the number of years in default.
All payments by Businesses/ Companies and Partnerships should be paid at the Department’s on-site Bank, Fidelity Bank Limited and NOT to any individual.
JEMIMA M.OWARE (MRS)
AG. REGISTRAR-GENERAL
–
By: Jessica Ayorkor Aryee/citibusinessnews.com/Ghana
