Registration of a business offers legitimacy to allow individuals to offer services from an established address. It is beneficial because it allows the individual to access loans and grants, obtain contracts, operate bank accounts in their business’ name, inspire customer confidence and establish proper ownership.
If a business in operation is not registered with the Companies Office of Jamaica (COJ), it is considered to be illegal. Business names can be registered as a sole trade or a sole proprietorship, meaning there is one owner or a partnership where between two (2) and twenty (20) persons jointly own the business.
Who should register?
- Individuals or firms which buy or sell goods from an established address.
- Individuals or firms offering services from an established address in a name other than the individual’s own name or the name of all the partners in the firm.
To register a business the following is needed to be completed:
- Sole traders must complete a BRF1 form (commonly called the Super Form) which can be obtained at the COJ or downloaded from its website. A registration fee of J$2,500 must accompany the form.
- Partnerships must complete a BRF1 form. The registration fee is also J$2,500; however, if there are more than five partners the fee applied would be J$5,000.
Once the registration process is completed, the business’ name is uploaded to the COJ website. This is to prove to customers who are interested in a business to check the company’s credentials and ensure the businesses is legal.
This information was published in The Gleaner on April 30, 2019
For more resources to help you start a business: