Business owners in Montserrat are being asked to make sure they are registered with the Companies and Intellectual Property Office (CIPO).
As well as offering a number of benefits, registration ensures that they are complying with the law, a press release from the Financial Services Commission said on 22 January.
It urged people to “take deliberate steps if you are operating an unregistered business or company to ensure your entity is regularised” in accordance with the Companies Act 2023.
Some of the benefits of doing so, according to the press release, include:
- It recognises the business officially in the eyes of the law and protects the business name, which provides exclusive rights to use that name for the company.
- It helps with potential funding. Investors and financial institutions will only invest and conduct business with registered entities due to the foundation of legitimacy that formal registration provides.
- It gives the business a professional edge. Registering a business shows commitment in complying with the law which gives the entity a more professional look, potentially attracting more customers.
- It provides liability protection. Registering a business can help protect owners from liability if something goes wrong with the product or service.
Re-registration and annual returns
The Financial Services Commission also urged companies that are currently on the companies register to re-register at cipo.fsc.ms by 7 March and file annual returns by 1 April.
“Re-registration of your company is a prerequisite for filing annual returns, which can only be done through the online CIPO portal. Note, hard copies are no longer accepted,” the press release said.
The annual return filing fee for companies is EC$200. Those that fail to file their returns by 1 April will receive a penalty of $25 for each day the return is late.
Continued non-compliance will lead to a default notice being issued and steps taken to strike the company from the company register, the commission said.
Registered agent
Companies that are considered to be a reporting company as defined by the law are required to have a registered agent that is a licensed company manager.
According to the Companies Act 2023, a reporting company is a large or public company whose gross revenue exceeds $4 million, or the value of assets exceeds $2m.
Foreign and external companies also require licensed company managers, while other companies may designate a resident director or licensed company manager.
Meanwhile, all businesses currently registered under the Registration of Business Names Act must take steps to file their annual returns by 1 April at a cost of $100.
Businesses that fail to do that, will receive a penalty of $50 and continued noncompliance will lead to a default notice being issued and steps taken to strike the business from the business names register.
