How To Register A Private School In Nigeria (2024)

This article is about how to register a private school in Nigeria this 2024. Private school in this article may mean either nursery, primary or secondary school or a combination of all three as a group of schools. In one of our previous articles, we discussed about how to start private school business in Nigeria and if you need information concerning that topic, kindly click on the link to find out more about it.

The process of registering a private school in Nigeria today is almost the same as registering any other business in the country. However, the only thing that differentiates the registration of a private school business with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) and that of any other business is that after the school has been registered either via the registration of a business name or as a limited liability company, it has to be approved by the government via the ministry of education before it can fully commence academic activities.

Nigerian Search Guide will walk you through the various processes involved in registering a private school in the country and it is very important that you take note of these steps so that you get to understand how it is done just in case you have it in mind to one day, own and run this particular type of business. Without further ado, let us discuss how you can successfully register your private school business in the country today.

GUIDE ON HOW TO REGISTER A PRIVATE SCHOOL IN NIGERIA 2024 

The following are the step by step processes involved in registering a private school business in Nigeria this 2024:

STEP 1: CHOOSE A UNIQUE NAME FOR YOUR PRIVATE SCHOOL BUSINESS

The first thing to do when you want to register your private school business in Nigeria with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) is to decide the name of your school and make sure that it is very unique. The reason it should be very unique is so that no one else can use it. You can search for it on the CAC website to check if the name you have chosen is available for registration or not.

Once the name check is over and it has been confirmed on the site that there’s no other person using this name, you should then proceed to conduct an official search using the CAC online portal. It will cost you ₦500 for this. The CAC portal will confirm the name availability and permit the reservation of this business name in Nigeria for 90 days.

STEP 2: APPLY FOR THE REGISTRATION OF YOUR BUSINESS NAME 

After your school name has been approved and reserved on the CAC online portal, the next thing to do is to apply for the registration of your private school business name and this will require you to submit your completed statutory forms. You can choose to complete this step online or go to the CAC office in person to finish up the process.

The following are the requirements for registering the name of your private school:

• The proposed name of the school (you are required to submit at least 2 names)
• The address of the school
• The aims and objectives of the school
• Valid means of identification of the school proprietor(s) which includes any copies of their National ID card, international passport, driving license or voters card
• Age, phone numbers, email address and residential address of the school proprietor(s), and
• 2 passport photographs of the school proprietor(s).

If the school is being registered as a Private Limited Liability Company, the following are required:

• The proposed name of the school (at least 2 names must be submitted)
• The address of the school
• The authorized share capital of the school
• The aims and objectives of the school
• Valid means of identification of at least 2 directors and shareholders of the school which includes any copies of their National ID card, international passport, driving license or voters card
• Age, phone numbers, email address and residential address of at least 2 directors and shareholders of the school.

STEP 3: SUBMISSION OF THE REGISTRATION FORM

After you are done filling the registration form, you will be required to pay a certain amount of money which is dependent on the particular State in Nigeria where you are registering at. You will then need to wait for about four weeks (one month) for any response from Corporate Affairs Commission of Nigeria (CAC).

STEP 4: COLLECTION OF CERTIFICATE

Upon successfully registering your private school in Nigeria as a business name, you will be issued a certificate of incorporation and a form CAC/BN/1 as proof that your private school name has been registered by the CAC. If however, you registered your private school business as a private liability company, the CAC will issue you a certificate of incorporation, a Form CAC 1.1, a memorandum and article of association which shall be issued to the Directors.

HOW TO GET THE MINISTRY OF EDUCATION APPROVAL FOR A PRIVATE SCHOOL IN NIGERIA

After the successful registration of your private school as a business name or a limited liability company in Nigeria, you will still require the approval of the Ministry of Education in the State where your school is situated before you can commence academic activities as a genuine business.

The following are the processes involved in getting the Ministry of Education approval for your private school business in Nigeria this 2024:

• There will be a first inspection of the school by select officials of the State Ministry of Education. This inspection covers inspection of toilets, classroom and administrative blocks.
• There will also be a submission of approval forms by the school to the State Ministry of Education.
• After which a second inspection of the private school by the officials of the State Ministry of Education will take place. This time, the inspection may cover the school’s curriculum, textbooks and other things as mandated by the Ministry.
• Once the State Ministry of Education is satisfied with the inspection they have carried out, and approval certificate will be issued to the private school and this certifies that the school can commence academic activities in as soon as possible.