CIPA deadline 30 September 2026 · 9 days left

Is your company constitution ready to be drawn up?

A constitution is not a form you fill in — it is a set of decisions your shareholders have to have made, and documents you have to have in hand. Ten questions below tell you exactly which ones you are missing, before you pay anybody anything.

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No sign-up, no payment, nothing to download Your answers stay yours unless you ask us to call Works whether or not you are registered yet
The ten things a constitution needs

Answer honestly — a "no" here is cheaper than a "no" from CIPA.

Every item below is something we would have to ask you for anyway before your constitution could be drafted and signed. Nothing is a trick question.

0 of 10 answered
The company itself
Your company name is reserved with CIPA — or the company is already registered.

Your constitution is written in the company's exact name. A name that is not secured yet can still be refused or changed, and a constitution in the wrong name has to be drawn up again.

You have decided what kind of company this is — private (Pty) Ltd, close company, company limited by guarantee, or public.

There is a different constitution for each one, and they are not interchangeable. This is the choice that is most expensive to get wrong, because changing it later means re-doing the filing.

You have a physical registered office address in Botswana — plot number, ward or street, and the city, town or village.

It goes into the constitution and onto your CIPA record, and it is where official notices are delivered. A postal box on its own will not do.

You have chosen the month your financial year ends.

It fixes when your accounts and annual returns fall due for the rest of the company's life. December matches the calendar year; March matches the BURS tax year. Both are common.

You know which business activity you are registering under, from CIPA's list.

CIPA uses a fixed list of activities, not a free description of your business. The one you choose also decides which trading licence you will need afterwards.

The people
Every director and shareholder is named, and you have a phone number and an email address for each of them.

Each one has to sign. We cannot prepare consent forms, or the controllers' annexure to the constitution, without knowing who they are and how to reach them.

You can get an Omang or passport copy — front and back — for every director and shareholder.

Identity has to be on file for each controller of the company.

The shareholders have agreed how the shares are split, and everyone has heard the same numbers.

The split goes into your constitution and your share register. Changing it afterwards means fresh resolutions, fresh signatures and another filing.

The declarations
For each shareholder you can say whether the shares are held jointly, whether they are held on behalf of somebody else, and who ultimately benefits from them.

These are declarations the shareholders have to make themselves — nobody can make them on their behalf — and they are checked.

You have a company secretary lined up, or you would like one appointed for you.

The secretary is named on the record, keeps your statutory registers, and files your returns once the company is running.

What it costs

P450, and your company secretary is appointed free.

We draft your constitution, circulate it to every shareholder for signature, and lodge it with CIPA the same working day the last person signs — so the only thing standing between you and the deadline is getting the signatures in. CIPA’s own filing fee is payable by you, at cost; our P450 is the professional fee. Finish the questions above and we will call you with your answers in front of us.

Already registered, no constitution

The deadline service. P450, secretary appointment included, lodged the same working day you sign.

Registering a new company

Your constitution is already inside the P750 registration — nothing extra to buy.

Not sure which you are

Answer the ten questions. The result says which, and so will we on the call.

Answer all 10 to see where you stand.

© 2026 PulaGo. Made in Botswana.Your data is processed under the Data Protection Act, 2024.

This checklist is general guidance on what PulaGo needs in order to prepare a company constitution — it is not legal advice, and it is not a CIPA requirement list. PulaGo is a private service and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or connected to the Companies and Intellectual Property Authority (CIPA) or the Government of Botswana.

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