Dáil Éireann díospóireacht -
Thursday, 3 Dec 1998

Vol. 497 No. 7

Written Answers - Company Registration.

John Gormley

Ceist:

19 Mr. Gormley asked the Tánaiste and Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment if she will report on the operation of the scheme, established under section 24 of the Companies Act, 1963, whereby certain companies may be licensed by her to dispense with the word limited from their names, particularly the reference to this scheme in the 1992 annual report of the Office of the Comptroller and Auditor General, page 90, paragraphs 6.1 and 6.2; and if she will make a statement on the matter. [24368/98]

Minister of State at the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment (Mr. Treacy)

The scheme, by which a company may apply to our Department for a licence to be registered without the addition of the word limited or teoranta in its name, was established in legislation prior to the Companies Act, 1963 and was continued by section 24 of that Act. The scheme operates in much the same fashion as described in paragraph 6.1 and 6.2 of the report of the Comptroller and Auditor General, 1992, which considered the statutory and related administrative requirements pertaining to charitable organisations.

Before deciding to grant a licence, we must be satisfied that the company or proposed company was formed or is being formed for the purpose of promoting commerce, art, science, religion, charity or any other useful object, that it intends to apply its income or profits, if any, in promoting its objects, and that it intends to prohibit the payment of any dividend to its members. Such companies are normally formed as guaranteed companies without a share capital. A recent examination of these companies on the companies office register, indicated that there are some 636 companies, including about 82 dissolved companies, registered without the word limited or teoranta.

A company with a licence to omit the word limited or teoranta from its name is subject to the same compliance requirements as a guarantee company without a share capital which does not have a licence, including the requirement that such companies comply with sections 126, 127, 128 and 157 of the Companies Act, 1963 in relation to the filing of annual returns and accounts with the Companies Registration Office. The statutory requirement on companies to file documents is monitored by the Companies Registration Office. While this statutory requirement is placed on all companies, further spot checks of section 24 licence holders are carried out in relation to the conditions attaching to their licence.

A company which has a licence to omit the word limited or teoranta from its name must show on its business letters and order forms that it is a limited company.