Coronavirus: Filing of company returns further extended for 5 months

Pursuant to the 31st July deadline for filing of Annual Returns for all companies whose financial year ended by December 31st, 2019, the Registrar General Department (RGD) has further extended the deadline for submission to December 31st, 2020.

The extension has become necessary due to the continued spread of the Coronavirus pandemic and its negative impact on businesses which has indeed prevented companies from holding their Annual General Meetings (AGM).

The grace period applies to all Companies Limited by Shares, and by Guarantee, including Churches, Associations, External Companies and Renewal of Partnerships and Businesses for 2019/2020 financial year.

The Department had previously directed that companies who failed to comply with the earlier deadline would be liable to a penalty increased from Ghc400 to Ghc450 effective 3rd August, 2020. However, the RGD has reversed this earlier decision.

This is the third time the Department is extending the submission date, originally scheduled for April 30th this year. The move is expected to enable companies who are yet to file their annual returns have ample time to submit them.

Regarding payments, the Department is cautioning that it has not authorized anyone to demand mobile money payment for either filing of Annual Returns or Renewal of Businesses, stressing that it does not have a mobile money number nor appointed any registration agents to visit offices and homes to enforce compliance.

This was contained in a statement signed by the RGD’s Head of Public Relations, Constance Adomaa Takyi, and sent to Goldstreet Business.

“There is no Cancellation Unit at RGD mandated to call clients to file Returns and the Legal and Audits Units at Registrar-General’s Department have not been tasked to strike out any Company/ Business Names”, the statement added.

Effective today, the RGD is introducing a coupons system for all its services offered at the front office up to a maximum of 200 clients daily. This is to enable the Department carry out its mandates whiles observing all safety protocols specified under the COVID-19.

Key Highlights

Section 126 of the Companies Act, 2019, (Act 992) makes it mandatory for companies to file their annual returns once every year which include particulars of every member of the Company as well as its beneficial owners.

Under section 6(1) of the Incorporated Private Partnerships Act, 1962, once every year, “the Partners shall deliver to the Registrar of Partnerships a statement in the prescribed Form renewing the Partnership”.

Furthermore, Sole Proprietorships are required by law to renew their Business Names once every year or shall be deemed to have lapsed whereupon the Registrar may take the Business Name off the Companies Register.

To be in good standing and avoid being taken off from the companies register, Business Names would have to pay for the number of years they have not renewed up to date but are not expected to pay any penalty.