Registrar of Companies and Institutions at the Office of the Registrar General is warning companies and institutions who fail to file their annual returns to do so with immediate effect or risk delisting from the register.

Jemima Oware says currently, about 2,584 companies and institutions have been listed and are at risk of being deleted from the register if they fail to pay heed to warnings.

“We started off with about 2788 out of 3100 that we've already deleted. We have another batch of 2584. We're using this opportunity to inform such businesses to come up and file their returns.

"Once they're able to do it, the system will change you from not in good standing to being in good standing,” she said on Tuesday.

Speaking in an interview on JoyPrime’s, Prime Morning show she explained that each time a company delays filing their annual return they have to pay a penalty of GH¢600.

She continued that to file a company’s return, the institution would have to pay GH¢90, hence if a company has not filed its return for years, they are to multiply the said amount by the number of years withstanding.

“If they come now, you pay GH¢90 for each year that you do not file. For the last 10 years, you haven't filed. That's GH¢990 for each year you did not file. Then there's a flat penalty of GH¢600."

Mrs Oware also said churches are expected to file their annual returns just as any other company since they are a company limited by guarantee.

She emphasised that the filling of annual returns is not entirely based on profits made but “ the sort of assets you have and the sort of liabilities.”

The Registrar noted that most of the churches did not have professionals to handle their accounts therefore they failed to file their annual returns.

“You would need possibly a new secretary. Now we're using professionals in the past anybody at all will be a secretary they would appoint anybody.

“When I say anybody, one not learned even in the act of company setting up and all that could be made a secretary so obviously what do you expect? They will not keep the books; they will not file the returns,” she added.

However, she urged the churches to hire services of qualified persons with the right skills such as lawyers or chattered secretaries to manage their books as they would not be exempted from the exercise.