Registering for a SCUML certificate is a form, not a filing you need an agent for. Here is the order to do it in.
Before you start: gather your documents
A company registering with SCUML uploads its certificate of incorporation, memorandum and articles, CAC status report (or CAC 1.1 or CAC 7 and CAC 2) and tax ID printout. Have these scanned and ready before you open the portal, since the session can time out if you go looking for a file halfway through.
A business name instead provides its certificate of registration, its status report or Form BN-01, and a tax ID printout. Neither type needs anything beyond what you already hold from registering with the CAC.
Some sectors add one more document. Car dealers typically need AMDON membership, betting firms a state lotteries board licence, and accounting firms proof of ICAN, ANAN or ACCA membership.
Step 1: create an account on the SCUML portal
Go to scuml.efcc.gov.ng and start a new registration. You will be asked for basic company details first: name, RC or BN number, address and sector.
Keep the sector description close to your CAC records. A mismatch here is one of the more common reasons a submission comes back with a query.
Step 2: complete the declaration of business activities
This is the core of the process under Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Act 2022. You describe what the business actually does, day to day, not just its registered objects clause.
Upload your documents at this stage. Double-check file sizes and formats before submitting, since a failed upload is easy to miss until the portal rejects the whole form.
Step 3: submit and wait for approval
Once submitted, the application moves into SCUML's review. There is nothing further to do on your side while it is pending.
While your application is pending
There is no separate tracking page to refresh every hour. The portal does not expect you to chase the application once it is in.
If a query comes back asking for a missing document, respond through the same account rather than starting a fresh registration. Two open applications for the same business tend to confuse the review, not speed it up.
What it costs and how long it takes
SCUML registration is free of charge. Nobody should charge you to file this form, and government messaging actively discourages paying anyone for it.
The certificate is emailed 7 to 10 days after approval once approved, to the director's email address on file. If nothing arrives in that window, check spam before contacting SCUML directly.
Common mistakes
- Paying an agent for a "fast-track" certificate. The process is free and does not move faster because someone charged you for it.
- Uploading the wrong CAC document. A CAC status report, or CAC 1.1 with CAC 7 and CAC 2, is what most companies need, not just the certificate of incorporation alone.
- Leaving out the sector-specific document. A car dealer or betting firm application without its extra licence tends to stall.
- Using an old email address. The certificate goes to whatever address the portal has on file, not necessarily the one you check daily.
After you're registered
Once your certificate arrives, keep a copy for your bank and for any tender that asks for it. Read what a SCUML certificate is actually used for if you're not sure when to produce it, and check which businesses need to register at all if a client or bank has asked you to confirm your DNFBP status.
For deadlines like this one alongside your other filings, use the compliance calendar. The rest of this series sits on the SME regulators hub.