A total of 513,336 busi­nesses that have defaulted in filing their annual re­turns and renewal for the past three years risk being struck off from the companies’ registry if they fail to file by De­cember 31 this year.

The businesses include 3,100 church organisations and 500,000 sole proprietorship entities.

Already, 2,788 businesses in default, have been put in a state of inactivity for non-filing of returns for more than three years.

Speaking at a stakeholder meeting with the Ghana Union of Traders Association (GUTA) in Accra yesterday, the Registrar Gen­eral, Jemima Oware, said that all businesses that are in default for more than four years would be struck off the register for lapse of the business name in accordance with law governing company regis­tration by end of December.

The meeting was to announce some activities of the Office of Registration of Companies for the end of the year and beginning of early next year.

“Effective next year, all com­panies and business names in our Legacy Register will be given ample time to register and migrate their business onto the Registrar. At the lapse of the period those busi­nesses will be taken through due process for struck off,” she stated.

Mrs Oware explained that, the Office of the Registrar of Compa­nies (ORC) would enforce the law to the latter after the deadline after offering the businesses some grace period to file their returns.

“All registered companies and businesses must file their annual returns and renewals at the end of the year. Failure to file annual returns or renewal may result in the dissolution of the registered entity in accordance with the law,” she noted.

The office, she said had insti­tuted a GH¢300 administrative penalty charge for companies and each officials of the company that default next year.

As part of measures to encour­age voluntary compliance, Mrs Oware stated that, inspectors from the office would be conducting inspection of business certificates and legal documents from 2024.

Additionally, she noted that the office would organise sensitisation campaigns in some selected mar­kets in Accra to create awareness about the requirement for busi­nesses to file their annual returns and renewals.

She also noted that some ORC personnel would visit markets to assist traders with business regis­trations and renewals.

Mrs Oware said that a 24-hour service would be inaugurated to process and register businesses within 24 to 48 hours with addi­tional charges.

The Greater Accra GUTA Chairman, Nana Kwabena Peprah has urged the ORC to collaborate with Ghana Revenue Authority (GRA) and other agencies to act against individuals registering busi­nesses for non-Ghanaians.

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