Companies Office Takes Business Information Service to Mobay to Boost Compliance

The Companies Office of Jamaica (COJ) is taking its public education and awareness campaign to western Jamaica this week in an effort to achieve a higher compliance level among businesses in terms of company registration and the filing of annual returns. Business operators in St. James and its environs are invited to participate in the COJ’s three-day mobile outreach service at the Montego Bay Civic Centre from October 16 to 18. Speaking with JIS News, Acting Compliance Manager at the COJ, Gregory Spaulding explained that the outreach is part of the agency’s public education and awareness campaign to improve compliance in the areas of business registration and the filing of annual returns by companies.
“The objective of this service is to facilitate submission of outstanding company documents. We will be assisting persons with rejected documents they have previously submitted to us to have businesses registered as well as focusing on the small business persons – educating them about the importance of registering under the Business Names Act,” Mr. Spaulding informed.
Services to be offered over the three days include company registration; filing of annual returns; filing of change of directors, secretaries and the registered office; as well as business name registration.
“We will be going through these documents to ensure that they are up to the standard required for submission and if persons have submitted documents that are not of the standard then we would want them to come in, have them corrected before we leave Montego Bay so that the process can be smoother once they come into (the office in) Kingston,” the Acting Compliance Manager outlined.
Persons registering a new business or renewing a business name registration certificate in order to trade goods must take their tax registration number (TRN); verification of their address, whether by way of a utility bill, rent receipt or any other acceptable document and will be asked to complete the business registration form which is the BN1 or BN2.
For incorporation of a new company, the forms that will have to be completed are the articles of incorporation, the declaration of compliance, and the registered office notice.
These documents are to be submitted with the tax registration numbers (TRN) of the officers (directors and secretary) of the company, who are named in the articles, and also the person who signed the declaration of compliance. For annual returns, the TRNs of the directors, the secretary and the company are also required.
Additionally, companies who may want to register a trade name would need to complete the BN3 form.