The Office of the Registrar of Companies (ORC) has announced plans to remove all business names that have not been renewed by January 17, 2027, from its register.
The move is aimed at enforcing compliance with the law requiring all registered business names to be renewed annually upon the expiration of their registration.
In a public notice issued on November 4, 2026, the Registrar said it had observed that a number of business names on the register had not been renewed as required by law.
It warned that all business names not renewed on or before January 17, 2027, would be deemed lapsed and subsequently removed from the register maintained by the office.
The ORC cautioned that once a business name was removed, it would cease to exist, adding that any person who continued to trade under such a cancelled name would be acting in breach of the law and liable to the applicable sanctions.
Consequently, it has urged business owners whose renewals are due or have expired to take immediate steps to regularise their registrations.
The affected businesses are required to renew their names at any office of the Registrar of Companies or through the USSD code *222#, pay all outstanding renewal fees and update any changes in their particulars, including their business addresses and nature of operations.
The Registrar also advised business owners who no longer intended to operate under their registered business names to formally notify the office in writing for the names to be removed from the register.
The ORC said the exercise formed part of its commitment to ensuring compliance with Ghana’s corporate regulatory framework and promoting high standards of corporate governance and business transparency.
BY GORDON WELLU
