A church is a place of worship for Christians, it is a solemn and reserved place meant to worship God,and fellowship of the brethren of the same faith.

In Nigeria, the constitution of the federal republic of Nigeria,1999 As Amended,recognizes the right of every citizen to freedom of worship ,right to freedom of thought,conscience and religion .see section 38 of extant constitution of Nigeria.

Right to freedom of association,And peaceful assembly and expressly declared that Nigeria shall be a secular state ,where there is no adoption of any religion as state religion.

A church is where worshipers of God which believes in Jesus Christ as the only lord and Savior meets,sometimes weekly,or on weekends to conduct service in compliance with their faith.

In Nigeria,if you are interested in registration of an organisation such as a church ,the corporate affairs commission is the sole body,that is in control of such registration. the process of church registration and post-incorporation is carried out under cac.

Procedures To Take To Register a Church In Nigeria

To Register a Church In Nigeria,You will need to contact a cac accredited agent,we can help you register a church if you are in need of one.

ii.supply the cac accredited agent the following information:

a. The proposed church name(s) and objectives of the church.

b.The names of the Founding trustees

c.The Residential address of the Founding trustees.

d.The address of the church

e.The identity card of the trustees of the church.

e.The date of birth of the trustees.

f.The Full name of the secretary.

g.The positions of the trustees and their tenure.

H.The email address,phone number of the trustees.

I.The constitution of the church,as well as the iron seal if any.

J.The signature of each trustee and secretary.

In complying with the steps above,the cac agent will prepare and submit to the commission.

iii .An Application For consent to register the church,it is the prerogative of the commission to approve or disprove the application. the application is followed with the payment of consent and reservation fee.it is important to underline that this procedure is different from what is obtainable if registration is for objects under business name or company.

In the event the application is approved,the cac agent will publish in at least one national newspaper and a local newspaper on the registration of the church.

The timeline for objection to a church registration is twenty-eight days(28days),in this period anyone or organisation objecting to the registration of the church is expected to file for objection through a cac agent. the cac agent will forward the objection letter to the corporate affairs commission,opposing the registration of the church.

However where there is no objection to the church registration filed within the 28 days timeline,the accredited agent will compile the registration documents,and the newspaper publication, and make payment for the church registration.

In compliance with all cac procedures,the application for registration is expected to take a month and two weeks to complete.

The cost of registration of a church depends on number of trustees, what the trustees want, however the cost ranges from N150K to N250K .

A church after completion of registration is expected to file annual returns within 30th June and 31st December of the preceding financial year.

Every Annual Returns for incorporated trustees must be filed between 30th June and 31st December for the preceding financial year,failure to comply will attract penalty charges.

CONCLUSION.

Registration of church is very important,it enhances the church legal status,it can now open a corporate account in the name of the church,it can also acquire and transfer movable and immovable properties its name.

A registered church is a big branded institution to both government and non -government organisations.